A 34-year-old upstate New York man was arrested for allegedly stealing more than two dozen boxes of fundraising candy intended to finance a field trip for members of an elementary school band and chorus.
Police say Vincent Gaudio, of Wallkill, brought a young relative to Leptondale Elementary School in Newburgh for football practice Monday after school hours. Left alone in the school lobby, he allegedly stole 28 boxes of candy valued at $1,680, making three trips in and out of the building to make off with the haul.
Police say the theft was captured by school surveillance cameras.
The candy was being sold by the school's music department to fund a field trip for the band and chorus students; it wasn't clear if the trip would be cancelled.
At the time of his arrest, police say Gaudio was still in possession of some of the candy, which was recovered and returned to the school.
Gaudio was charged with grand larceny and criminal trespassing. He was remanded to Orange County Jail in lieu of $3,000 bail and banned from Wallkill School District property. Information on an attorney for him wasn't immediately available.
In a statement, Wallkill Central School District Superintendent of Schools Kevin Castle “commended the Town of Newburgh Police Department for their collaboration and cooperation with the Wallkill School District in bringing this person to justice and returning the schools property,”
