Works and Engineering manager Kyril Burrows authorised multiple payments to the same contractor on the same dates for the same jobs, for amounts that were always less than $3,000, Supreme Court heard.The evidence came from Stephen Tucker, the buildings manager who replaced Mr Burrows in that role after he resigned in 2008.Mr Burrows, 48, is on trial accused of dishonestly submitting invoices so Government paid to rebuild the home he shared in St George’s with his wife Delcina Bean-Burrows, 49.He is further accused of directing Government funds to his wife’s companies Ren Tech and Theravisions for work that was not done. He is also alleged to have spent Government cash on three televisions for his private use at home. The fraud is said to have amounted to more than half a million dollars.Mr Tucker explained that $3,000 is the maximum that can be spent using purchase orders signed off by superintendents at Works and Engineering. Payments over $3,000 need to go through a “much more formal procedure” involving a tendering process. Superintendents can also sign for payments to contractors of up to $25,000 after three quotes had been gathered, he explained.Mr Tucker said after he became buildings manager, he became aware there was a filing room at the Prospect depot with “stacks of papers all over the place” and boxes with Mr Burrows’s name on them.When a clerk was assigned to clear up the room, documents were discovered that “raised questions” for him. He handed these documents, which amounted to “approximately one and a half boxes worth of material,” over to police in September or October 2009.Mr Tucker said he went on to make inquiries about a contracting company named J&M Construction and became concerned as a result. Documents showed the company was paid for work at a Government building, Teucer House on Cedar Avenue, but that work had not been done.He then searched his department’s payment management system to see how often payment certificates and purchase orders had been issued to J&M.“I found a collection of purchase orders, all under $3,000, being done sometimes several within one day, and they spanned several months,” he explained. “The frequency of seeing maybe five or six to the same vendor within one day made us concerned. I found it very unusual.”Mr Tucker showed the jury six invoices, all dated February 5 2006, submitted to Works and Engineering by J&M. Each was for less than $3,000 but the payments together totaled $12,532.50. The matching payment certificates said the money was for construction work at Somerset Bridge Post Office and Tudor Farm.The jury has heard that Mr and Mrs Burrows lived at Tudor Farm, a Government property, while their home in St George’s was being renovated.Mr Tucker noticed a similar pattern of invoices filed by the same company on the same day when he checked the payments system. He described this as “unusual,” adding that contracts should have been included with the paperwork for these transactions, but there was no sign of them.He explained that these were all signed off by Superintendent Calvin Waldron as project manager, with Mr Burrows providing the other signature. He also recognised the handwriting on the purchase orders as belonging to Mr Burrows.In evidence on Wednesday, Mr Waldron admitted authorising payments submitted by Mr Burrows without reading the documents.Mr Tucker told the court it was not normal for the payments relating to Tudor Farm to have been processed as separate transactions in this manner, when they could all have been done as one.“Can you think of any legitimate basis upon which someone might split up payment certificates and invoices in this fashion?” inquired Ms Mulligan.“No,” replied Mr Tucker.He went on to detail 16 invoices, all issued by J&M on the same date, June 6 2006, for amounts under $3,000. They totaled more than $11,000 and stated that work had been done at St David’s Post Office and Dellwood Middle School. They were signed by Mr Waldron and Mr Burrows.Again, Mr Tucker said these could have been made with one payment certificate rather than split up.He told the jury that once he noted this unusual pattern of payments, he alerted Permanent Secretary Robert Horton.Mr and Mrs Burrows deny 35 charges including cheating Government, obtaining Government money by deception and false accounting, and the case continues.