This just in from state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's office: The former treasurer of the Woodstock Fire Company No. 3 is facing second-degree grand larceny charges for allegedly siphoning more than $200,000 from the fire department's account and cash proceeds from fundraisers.
Lake Hill resident Dale D. Hughes Jr., 64, was arraigned in Woodstock Town Court and remanded to the Ulster County Jail in lieu of bail. Hughes was the treasurer of the fire company from 1997 to 2011. He is currently the company's vice president.
The audit and investigation by DiNapoli's office revealed that Hughes endorsed 83 checks totaling $200,385 that were made payable to cash. Auditors estimate the former treasurer pocketed an additional $21,000 in cash proceeds from various pancake breakfast fundraisers.
According to the release, officials began to suspect something was awry in May 2011, when a $10,000 check for a new fire truck bay bounced. Fire department officials asked Hughes about the check, then contacted the state comptroller's office, which launched an audit.
The release states that Hughes then attempted to cover his tracks, replacing about $170,000 of the missing money:
The former treasurer then attempted to cover his tracks with a series of undocumented deposits into the fire company's account. These include:
- A wire transfer made on May 24, 2011 into the fire company's checking account in the amount of $50,000 from the account of Hughes' sister.
- Deposits made to the company's checking account from Hughes' personal checking account totaling $68,600 on three separate dates: June 3, 2011 ($60,000), June 20, 2011 ($5,000) and August 31, 2011 ($3,600).
- A check for $51,159, dated August 1, 2011, from the Hughes' checking account used to open a certificate of deposit in the fire company's name.
In the release, Ulster County District Attorney Holley Carnright credits the comptroller's office with saving Ulster County taxpayer funds in the investigation:
"This is yet another example of good government at work," said Carnright. "If Comptroller DiNapoli's staff had not been available to conduct this audit, it would have cost the taxpayers of Ulster County thousands of dollars to hire a forensic accounting firm. Their efforts were vital to my office's criminal investigation."
Below: A detailed report from DiNapoli's office about their audit of the Woodstock Fire Company No. 3. In it, the Comptroller recommends greater oversight of the fire company's finances to prevent embezzlement in future.
