01.13.05 -
Farmingdale Ex-mayor busted,
Joseph Trudden Pleads Not Guilty to Five Felony Charges Related to State Audit,
Expense Scandal
Joseph Trudden, a former mayor of Farmingdale, was arrested yesterday on felony
charges of larceny and submitting false records to the state comptroller's
office during an audit of village finances.
Nassau District Attorney Denis Dillon said Trudden tried to justify his use of
a village credit card for more than $2,000 in meals and drinks at local
restaurants by falsely claiming they were for government business.
Trudden surrendered at 8 a.m. at the district attorney's office in Mineola,
where he was arrested and handcuffed. He was arraigned at First District Court
in Hempstead, said Jim Clarke, an assistant district attorney. He pleaded not
guilty and was released on $1,000 bail. He faces up to 7 years in prison if
convicted.
After 12 years in office, Trudden was defeated in a mayoral election last
March. He disputed the audit's findings when it was released last June.
Trudden was not available for comment yesterday, said his lawyer, Joseph Conway
of Mineola.
"Joseph Trudden is and has been a lifelong public servant, serving both
his country and his community with honor and distinction," Conway said in
a statement.
A former Marine, Trudden was a Suffolk police officer for more than 20 years
and retired as "the second-highest decorated officer in Suffolk County
history, including a gold medal for bravery," the lawyer's statement said.
"Mr. Trudden has entered a not guilty plea to the charges filed against
him today and looks forward to addressing those charges in court."
Dillon said in a statement that Trudden falsified documents to cover up his
personal use of taxpayer money. Many of the meetings Trudden cited to justify
his expenses never took place, Dillon said.
Trudden faces five felony charges: first-degree tampering with public records,
first-degree offering a false instrument for filing, fourth-degree grand
larceny, first-degree falsifying of business records and defrauding the
government.
The audit of Farmingdale by state Comptroller Alan Hevesi's office, released in
June, said the village failed to monitor skyrocketing legal costs, credit-card
expenses and officials' use of vehicles and cellular phones under Trudden.
The audit examined legal fees and expenses for other services between June 1,
2001, and May 31, 2003. Among its findings, the audit found legal fees,
cellular telephone bills and credit-card charges far in excess of comparable
Long Island villages.
Hevesi's auditors found that seven Farmingdale officials incurred about $60,000
in credit-card charges. At least $17,000 of the credit- card charges were for
personal expenses the officials later repaid, and another $43,000 lacked
receipts or explanations, the audit found.
- Joseph Mallia: Newsday Staff
Writer
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