SALT LAKE CITY — A man who considers himself a longtime friend of Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott submitted a formal complaint with the Utah Attorney General's Office on Wednesday, calling for an investigation into Ott's well-being.

Jeremy Roberts, a member of the Utah Republican Party, said he's known Ott for 14 years through political circles and as a personal friend.

"In my recent interactions with Mr. Ott, I fear his failing health has made him a target for exploitation, specifically from members of his staff," Roberts wrote in his complaint. "I believe (Ott's) senior staff has taken advantage of his health for their own personal, financial and employment gain."

In his filing, Roberts specifically names Ott's chief deputy, Julie Dole, as well as his office aide, Karmen Sanone, who has also been identified by county workers, court documents and social media as Ott's girlfriend, fiancee or wife.

"Gary isn't the problem. Gary's sick," Roberts said in an interview. "The problem is the cover-up. … I don't mean to be disrespectful of a good man, but it reeks of 'Weekend at Bernie's.'"

Dole said she and Ott are "astounded" by the complaint, and she accused Roberts of having political motives.

"A complaint of this nature is usually held as a confidential matter and considered unfounded until proven, not provided to the media for political fodder. One has to wonder about Mr. Roberts' motives," Dole said in an email Wednesday night — a statement she said was "written in collaboration and approved" by Ott.

Included in Dole's email was a prepared statement from Ott: "I don't know why he is doing this. I haven't seen him in a long time."

Dole said Ott hasn't had an "extended interaction" with Roberts for almost two years, but Roberts said he last saw Ott on Capitol Hill in April or May.

Roberts said he wonders why Dole chose to address his relationship with Ott rather than the allegations in the complaint.

"The public wants to know if Gary is OK, and then she calls into question whether we're friends or not?" he said. "It's not my relationship with Gary that everyone cares about. It's her relationship with Gary they care about."

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Audit: S.L. County recorder has 'very little oversight or involvement' in his office

The question has gone unanswered for nearly eight months: Is Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott really running his own office?

Roberts' complaint comes one day after the release of a summary of an audit into Ott's office, which found that the recorder's duties have been "almost exclusively delegated" to Dole and other senior managers, and that Ott does not "participate directly in the day-to-day management activities of the office."

"I truly believe people are preying on him, and that really bothers me," Roberts said. "The cover-up is really difficult to stomach. When they say he's just fine, he's not. He's not fine."

Roberts is not the first to allege Dole and Sanone are "taking advantage" of Ott to stay in their positions.

Ray Lancaster, union president for the Utah Alliance of Government Employees, expressed that fear in an investigative report the Deseret News published in February.

Dole and Sanone have consistently denied such allegations, but the women routinely answer questions on Ott's behalf — sometimes when he is directly asked a question — and have told the Deseret News that he is running the office but isn't a "detail leader."

Questions have swirled around Ott's health ever since a bizarre incident on a cold January night, when police found a shivering and incoherent Ott stranded on a rural highway west of Tooele, wandering away from his truck, which was out of gas.

Soon after police reports of that incident came to light, county workers claimed worries about Ott's health have lingered for years, even before his re-election campaign in 2014.

On Tuesday, Ott failed show up to a Salt Lake County Council meeting to address the audit's findings, with Dole asking that he be excused because he had an "exacerbation" of a recurring case of shingles.

"I am confident Ott has conducted himself with the utmost integrity, professionalism and decency," Roberts said, "but I fear his current mental and physical health render him vulnerable under Utah law."

Roberts said Dole's and Sanone's claims that Ott isn't a "detail leader" doesn't add up with his impression of Ott over the years.

"He was never the lax, asleep-at-the-helm kind of guy," he said. "He's a funny, feisty guy. But the last time I saw him, he's not there anymore."

Roberts said he worries Ott's "current mental and physical health render him vulnerable under Utah law," alleging that the recorder isn't capable of delegating his work to his deputy and other senior managers.

That's why he's calling on the Utah Attorney General's Office to investigate a possible violation of the Abuse, Neglect or Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult Act.

Roberts said he decided to file the complaint because the County Council has done everything in its power to address public concerns surrounding Ott through ordering the audit back in April. County Councilwoman Jenny Wilson on Tuesday even demanded Ott "engage" more in his work or resign.

"Somebody's got to step up and look out for Gary's best interests," Roberts said. "Let (the attorney general) investigate it, and best-case scenario is we find out things are better than we hope. … Let's figure out what's really going on and if he's really OK."

Dan Burton, spokesman for the Utah Attorney General's Office, confirmed Wednesday that the office received Roberts' complaint.

"We'll screen it like we do all complaints and go from there," Burton said.

The office will not confirm or deny whether it takes up the case after reviewing the complaint in order to protect the integrity of the investigation, he said. Email: kmckellar@deseretnews.com Twitter: KatieMcKellar1

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