Myrtle Beach, S.C. — The former City of Loris clerk of court has been charged with grand larceny after state investigators alleged he used payroll access to raise his own pay for 44 consecutive biweekly periods.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division charged Todd Massey II, 40, on Oct. 7 with grand larceny valued at $10,000 or more and an ethics violation for using an official position for financial gain. SLED said the conduct ran from June 1, 2021, through Jan. 5, 2023.
According to SLED, Massey’s approved hourly rate was $16.35 in June 2021 and rose to $16.98 after a cost-of-living increase approved by Loris City Council on July 1, 2021. From July 2021 through January 2023, investigators said his hourly rate climbed to figures ranging from $22.82 to $46.26 without council approval.
SLED calculated that the unauthorized raises produced $55,183.02 above his approved salary. A warrant summarized in local reporting said the increases were not approved or known by the City Council or Mayor Michael Suggs.
Massey turned himself in after warrants were issued Oct. 6 and was booked into the J. Reuben Long Detention Center. The 15th Circuit Solicitor’s Office is set to prosecute the case. A charge is an accusation, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Local reporting also noted Massey’s earlier 2024 arrest in a separate theft case involving Giving Hope Gardens, a Loris nonprofit that employs adults with disabilities, and a later guilty plea to forgery counts. Those earlier matters are separate from the new SLED payroll charges.
