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Rockland County District Attorney Tom Walsh announced Tuesday, Dec. 14, the plea of guilty by Christopher Nau, a Spring Valley Volunteer Firefighter to grand larceny.
Nau was the treasurer for the Columbian Engine Company and served as the Assistant Treasurer for the Spring Valley Fire Department, the DA's Office said.
As a condition of the plea, the defendant will be required to pay back the entirety of the funds taken from Spring Valley Fire Department and Columbian Engine Company in the amount of $37,932.83, they added.
In June of 2020, the Spring Valley Fire Department elected a new Chief of the Department, who appointed a new treasurer and began a full audit of the department.
After finding questionable transactions and discrepancies in the treasurer reports, the department would bring their findings to authorities, the DA's Office said.
The Rockland County District Attorney's Office began a thorough investigation starting in the fall of 2020 that analyzed transactions related to various department accounts dating from January 3, 2016, up until February 2021 that Nau oversaw in his role as treasurer and assistant treasurer.
In total, $32,033 was taken from the Spring Valley Fire Department and $5,899 from the Columbian Engine Company, the DA's Office added.
Nau was removed from both treasurer positions and suspended by the department in August 2020.
Rockland County District Attorney Tom Walsh said, “Today’s guilty plea sends a clear message to any individual who is thinking about misusing volunteer Fire Department funds, we will investigate and prosecute you.
"I want to assure the public that money donated to the Spring Valley Fire Department and Columbian Engine Co., related to the tragic death of firefighter Jared Lloyd in March of 2021, were untouched and not related to this criminal investigation.”
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