Sedgwick County files $1.28M theft report against online auction company
Officials with Sedgwick County have filed a theft report with local and federal authorities alleging CivicSource — a New Orleans-based online auction company — failed to transfer $1.28 million in property tax foreclosure proceeds.
According to a media release published by the county, CivicSource collected almost $1.3 million during an Oct. 21 property tax foreclosure sale but has not delivered the money to the county treasurer’s office.
“Sedgwick County has made repeated demands to CivicSource,” the release read. “However, CivicSource has failed to transfer the funds despite its chief executive officer’s numerous promises to do so.”
The treasurer’s office has been working with CivicSource since 2022 to administer online property tax foreclosure sales. Sale proceeds then go toward paying the outstanding taxes, costs and fees that would normally be collected through the property tax process. The professional agreement between the county and CivicSource was made “based upon the prior successful experiences of other counties that employed CivicSource,” the release read.
The county said it had not experienced significant issues with the vendor until this year. The contract — which did not go through the county’s competitive bidding process or receive approval from county commissioners or Sedgwick County’s legal counsel — was terminated on Dec. 5.
According to the release, the county wants to ensure the promised funds are available for the district court to disburse to property owners or eligible claimants. To do so, county commissioners will consider transferring about $1.28 million at their Dec. 17 meeting.
The county says it is pursuing “any and all legal remedies” to recover the money. It’s also notified local and federal law enforcement, the district courts, other Kansas counties and purchasers of tax foreclosure properties managed by CivicSource. Officials also said they may seek to remove the company as a county vendor and plan to review the county’s purchasing and auction processes.
CivicSource did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Anyone with questions related to foreclosure proceedings can contact Christine Wilson at the treasurer’s office at 316-660-9128.
This story was originally published December 10, 2025 at 4:22 PM.
