A former Throop town supervisor accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars is asking a judge to dismiss a civil lawsuit against him, arguing the claims were filed too late.
The town filed the suit in June against former Supervisor William Tarby, who served from 2004 to 2019. It comes after a separate criminal case in which Tarby pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $11,000 between 2017 and 2019 following a New York State Comptroller’s audit. He was ordered to pay restitution and is barred from holding public office.
The new lawsuit alleges Tarby stole a total of $36,810 over roughly a decade by writing checks to himself or withdrawing money from several town accounts. According to the complaint, he closed one account and kept more than $1,200 instead of transferring it, and in 2015, he made two withdrawals totaling about $1,500 from the town’s concession stand fund.
Tarby’s attorney argues the claims are “time-barred” because the most recent alleged theft happened in 2015—about ten years ago—and state law requires fraud claims to be filed within six years of the incident or two years after it is discovered.
The town disputes that, saying it “only recently” became aware of the transactions, according to reporting by The Auburn Citizen.
A judge will now decide whether the case can move forward.
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