Pharsalia, NY -- The 72-year-old former supervisor for a tiny Chenango County town will spend one-to-three years in prison for swindling $240,000 over more than a decade.
Dennis O. Brown, who was supervisor in Pharsalia, Chenango County, for 35 years, inflated his salary by $20,000 a year and used town credit cards to pay for a lavish lifestyle, according to a joint investigation among the state comptroller, attorney general and county district attorney’s office.
Pharsalia has a population of 593. That means that Brown stole roughly $405 from every resident in the town.
The salary padding alone accounted for $175,000 in stolen taxpayer money, authorities said.
Among the items Brown charged to the town’s credit cards: trips to Myrtle Beach and New York City, fees for PayPal, Amazon and iTunes, and designer handbags, liquor and cooking classes, authorities said.
The investigation also revealed that Brown used town funds to pay 100% of his home telephone, internet and electric bills.
The thefts were uncovered in 2018 and he was arrested in April 2019. Brown lost election that November.
At the time of his arrest, Brown was also a member of the county’s Board of Supervisors and served on its finance and public works committees.
Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.