Former HPG director pleads guilty to grand larceny, stole $1,700 from July 4 festival

Michelle “Shelly” Stevens, the former executive director of Hornell Partners for Growth (HPG), has pleaded guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny for stealing $1,711 in cash from Hornell’s annual Fourth of July festival.

The announcement came Friday from New York state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, Steuben County District Attorney Brooks Baker and the New York State Police.

Proceeds from the festival were earmarked for the City of Hornell’s Business Improvement District. Stevens was charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and first-degree falsifying business records in February of 2020.

“Stevens betrayed her responsibility to the public by lining her own pockets with money that was meant to help her community,” DiNapoli said in a press release. “Thanks to my partnership with Steuben County D.A. Baker and the State Police, she was held accountable for her actions.”

Stevens, 38, joined HPG in 2014 before resigning in April of 2018. In 2020, Baker told The Spectator that the matter came to his office after a tip spurred an investigation by the Attorney General’s office and the Comptroller’s office. Stevens was accused of falsifying business records by claiming that she distributed additional festival cash to local charities, instead allegedly depositing the $1,711 into her personal bank account.

Stevens was ordered to pay full restitution. She is due back in court for sentencing on Jan. 3, 2023, according to the Comptroller’s Office.

“This plea was accomplished based on the tremendous effort and work of the Comptroller’s office, the NY State Police, and the Steuben County DA’s Office,” said Steuben County Assistant District Attorney Drinald V. Bilcari. “It sends the right message that betrayal of public trust will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

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Hornell Partners for Growth is the official name of Hornell’s Business Improvement District. It is funded through a tax paid by commercial property owners within the district and governed by a Board of Directors elected by the membership.

While the matter predates HPG's current leadership, Michelle Pogue, HPG’s chairwoman, said the organization has since put measures in place to protect against financial misdeeds.

“We have worked closely with the Comptroller’s Office to meet and go above and beyond their expectations,” said Pogue. “We’re happy to put this behind us.”

HPG is involved with organizing many community events, such as July 4, the Fall Festival and Hornell for the Holidays. Mayor John Buckley, who now serves on HPG’s Board of Directors, said it is important for the organization to maintain the trust of the community.

“Having had discussions with the Comptroller’s Office, we have applied the corrective measures and the corrective action to HPG to ensure that these types of things won’t ever happen in the future,” said Buckley.

Stevens also served as Almond’s town clerk in Allegany County from 2018 until her resignation in the spring of 2021. The Almond town clerk’s office was the subject of a municipal audit by the Comptroller’s office in 2019. The audit period ran from Jan. 1, 2019 to Sept. 5, 2019. The “key findings” section of the report noted that “the clerk did not deposit or remit all tax collections in a timely manner” and “the clerk did not always issue receipts or retain adequate evidence of receipt for tax payments collected or to establish tax payment dates.”

The Almond audit did not report evidence of any crimes. Town officials agreed with the Comptroller’s recommendations and indicated they planned to initiate corrective action.

Chris Potter can be reached at cpotter@gannett.com or on Twitter @ChrisPotter413. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Former HPG director Shelly Stevens pleads guilty to grand larceny