The state auditor received a subpoena Friday in connection with the investigation into former governor Mike Easley's travel records.

Federal authorities have asked State Auditor Beth Woods to turn over any information in relation to the investigation, according to Dennis Patterson, the State Auditor's office director of public affairs.

"It's fairly common for law enforcement, if there's some sort of investigation going on, to look at any audit material we might or might not have relevant to that," said Patterson.  "We were sort of surprised because usually we just get a telephone call, but in this case it was subpoenas."

An investigation by federal and state authorities focuses on Easley's travel records.

Authorities are looking into private flights and whether they exceeded campaign limits.

"We had done one audit that involved travel expenses with Mary that was released in October, and our long-standing policy is that we can only discuss audits that we've released," said Patterson.  "We never even confirm or deny that any other audit is in progress or being done."

Easley has not been accused of any crime and has said he's "confident of the outcome."

Read More On The Easley Investigation

Related Links

1. [ PDF ] State Auditor Subpoena