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ST. LOUIS — A new mystery bouncing around City Hall involves former Comptroller Darlene Green — and how she’s back on the city payroll even though she was voted out of office nearly four months ago.

Green started her City Hall career more than 30 years ago in the budget department before eventually rising to comptroller, which is a separate office.

Her long tenure as comptroller, the city’s chief financial officer, ended when she lost her latest re-election effort in April.

But earlier this month, Green was issued a check of nearly $6,500 for two weeks of work. The check came from the budget department — where Green hadn’t worked since 1995.

And as of Wednesday, she remains on the payroll sheets and will be issued another check on Friday.

Records indicate that sometime after the election loss, the city’s personnel department reinstated Green as if she had simply been on a 30-year leave of absence from the budget department.

The payment of nearly $6,500 earlier this month equates to an annual salary topping $168,000. That’s about $11,000 more than the current director of the budget department, Paul Payne, makes.

Sources say Green has not appeared in the budget office in recent memory, and the check issued to her on July 18 remains uncashed.

Reached by phone Wednesday, Green said, “Wow, did they do that? Can you find out (what happened) and let me know?�

When asked if she knew the budget department was getting paychecks issued in her name, she said, “I’m happily retired, I’m no longer a city employee.�

One person trying to get to the bottom of the conundrum is Donna Baringer, Green’s successor as comptroller.

Baringer said finding a solution to the puzzle, however, has proved to be anything but easy.

“Yes, there’s a check,� Baringer said when asked to confirm that Green had been paid earlier this month. “And there is another one that has been cut� for issuance Friday.

But Baringer said it’s unclear how Green was classified in the payroll system as an employee of a department she left 30 years ago.

“We’re trying to figure out who had the authority to do this (because) somebody went in and did this,� she said.

Baringer said the city personnel department oversees the placement of all employees on the payroll.

“There are multiple people on all these emails, so we’re trying to figure out who� placed Green on the books, Baringer said.

Green’s path through city government was blazed by former Mayor Freeman R. Bosley Jr. She worked for Bosley when he was the city’s circuit clerk. After Bosley was elected mayor in 1993, he named Green as the budget director.

Then in 1995, Bosley tapped her to be the comptroller when the incumbent, Virvus Jones, resigned after pleading guilty to felony fraud charges.

After serving the remainder of Jones’ term, Green was elected comptroller on her own in 1997. She then ran successfully for re-election six more times, winning those races by 60% or more.

But in April, she lost to Baringer, a former St. Louis alderwoman and state representative.

The loss came after a series of controversies for Green, including the bumpy rollout of new accounting and payroll software and complaints from city employees about paychecks that were off. Contractors complained about delays in getting documents and payments from the comptroller’s office. There also were reports about Green not frequently being at the office.

Payne, the current budget director, said it’s possible the personnel department decided Green had to return to his department’s payroll in order to get her pension.

“I don’t agree with that,� he said. “I think this is some snafu by the personnel department, and the personnel department needs to fix it.�

But getting in touch with personnel department supervisors to help solve the puzzle is not easy.

John Unnerstall, the department director, is out of the office until next week and is unavailable for comment, according to a spokesperson.

Biannca Lambert, a human resources systems information manager for the personnel department, also is out of the office.

And the three deputy personnel directors — Kathleen Tanner, Sylvia Donaldson and Brian Boeckelmann — could not comment about the matter.

“Director Unnerstall did not authorize any of the deputies to speak with reporters in his absence,� the spokesperson said.

So right now, the comptroller’s office is working with the budget department to track the e-mail trail that ultimately reinstated Green to the city payroll.

“We want to find out,� Baringer said, “how this fell through the cracks.�