Highway superintendent convicted of sex abuse against a child

Mike Randall, Times Herald-Record
·2 min read
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GOSHEN - Robert Hufcut, Mamakating's now-former highway superintendent and Summitville's former fire chief, was convicted of a child sexual abuse charge in Orange County Court on Friday.

Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler said a jury found Hufcut guilty of first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child, a felony.

Mamakating town Supervisor Michael Robbins said Hufcut was taken off the payroll as soon as he was convicted. He said the town board will appoint a replacement at its January meeting.

Hufcut also held the Summitville fire chief's position at the time of his arrest in June, but he does not appear on the current list of Sullivan County fire chiefs on the county website.

Hoovler said the jury found that Hufcut had, over a period of not less than three months, engaged in two or more acts of sexual conduct with a child less than 13 years old.

According to an indictment, the alleged abuse happened more than 20 years ago, between Oct 1, 2000 and Aug. 2, 2001.

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Hufcut is being held without bail in the Orange County Jail following the jury's verdict. He faces a potential of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced on March 7. He also will be registered as a sex offender as part of the sentence, Hoovler said.

"Children are precious and vulnerable and their victimization deserves to be met with all resources available to law enforcement," Hoovler said in a statement released by his office. "The defendant's actions are reprehensible and are even more troubling because the defendant is a public official. I commend the brave actions of the survivor in this case who came forward and testified about the traumatic events suffered at the hands of the defendant."

Brandon Ozman, Hufcut's attorney, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, the Poughkeepsie Journal and the Journal News-lohud. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @mikerandall845.

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Highway superintendent Robert Hofcut convicted of sex abuse