Investigators with the Horry County Solicitor's Office have begun investigating allegations of inside information being shared during a bid process for a Surfside Beach restaurant, the town's mayor tells NewsChannel 15.

Mayor Allen Deaton said a 15th Judicial Circuit investigator interviewed him last week and that he turned over e-mails and documents relating to the bid process for the lease on Nibils Restaurant at Surfside Pier.

"So far, they've interviewed me, and they've interviewed the interim administrator," Deaton said Wednesday afternoon.

Deaton says the investigation centers around whether former town administrator Ed Booth provided inside information to help Cecil Chandler secure the lease for Nibils, which expires in December. The town has owned Nibils' building and the pier it's attached to since October 2008.

Chandler, a 36-year veteran of WBTW News 13, told "The Sun News" he was fired last week from the CBS affiliate because of his involvement in the bidding process.

Deaton said he learned the former administrator and a former town attorney became involved with Chandler's LLC, "Surfside Café at the Pier by Cecil, LLC."

"The concern is information sharing. Did a person have inside information or did they not?" Deaton said.

Booth abruptly left his post in mid-May, just a couple of weeks before the bids were turned in.

Deaton said the town received two bids, one from Chandler's LLC and another from Jack Cahill, who has operated Nibils for 23 years. Both bids were rejected by council because they were "non-responsive," Deaton said.

"They were not in compliance with what we asked for," Deaton said.

Deaton said "red flags" went up when he learned of Chandler's connection to Booth and a former town attorney during the bidding process.

"Concerns on several levels. Certainly the first level would be an ethical level," Deaton said. "If there is a criminal element, I'm not qualified to determine that. They (prosecutors) are."

Deaton said he initiated the call to prosecutors because it was his duty.

"My job is to make sure anything is investigated that is suspicious toward the town," Deaton said. "We've been very forthcoming. We're transparent. This is an open book for us."

Deputy Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said his office could not confirm or deny the existence of any possible ongoing investigation.

When contacted by phone Wednesday morning, Booth said he had no comment on the investigation.

"I'm not even sure there is an official investigation," Booth said.

Chandler told this reporter by phone Wednesday that he didn't understand why there was an investigation. He said Booth was involved in drawing up the bid, but he says everything they did was "above board."

Chandler said an investigator contacted him, but Chandler was sick and told the investigator he'd be happy to meet with him anytime.

Chandler said he hasn't heard back from the investigator, but called the allegations "the craziest thing in the world."