Candor Mayor, facing corruption charge, resigns

CANDOR, NY (WBNG) -- Village of Candor Mayor Eric C. Halstead has resigned after he was arrested on corruption and grand larceny charges.

The village board met Tuesday night to accept Halstead’s resignation. Halstead, 67, served as the village mayor since 2012.

New York State Police took Halstead into custody on July 1.

The New York State Comptroller’s Office said he is accused of withdrawing more than $23,000 in cash from a village account for personal use between February 2017 and May 2023. The office noted he replaced around $19,000 of the stolen money but still owes the village for the missing amount.

Deputy Mayor of the Village of Candor Gwen Isham said the board learned about the criminal charges against Halstead on July 2. Isham said the village board voted to accept his resignation immediately.

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said the matter was reported to his office after an outside consultant was hired and later discovered the withdrawals that were made from the Village General Fund. DiNapoli noted those withdrawals were recorded by the village as “ATM withdrawal” or “mayor’s discretionary.”

“Mayor Halstead was entrusted by his community to serve their interests, but instead allegedly treated the village’s money as his own,” DiNapoli said in a news release.

The village board said it will cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation.