Jack McNeil, the former Skaneateles village police chief and the current Weedsport village police administrator, was arrested Thursday on charges he defrauded the village he served for 35 years of its parking meter revenue.

McNeil, of 86 W. Genesee St., Skaneateles, has been charged on a felony complaint with third-degree grand larceny, a class D felony, and defrauding the government, a class E felony.

An investigation into McNeil began when his successor, Lloyd Perkins, noticed an increase in parking meter revenue when he started in the village police chief post June 2005. He contacted the Onondaga County District Attorney's Office, which began an investigation.

McNeil joined the village police force 1970. He became chief of police in 1984 and retired in 2005.

Two former Internal Revenue Service agents, Richard Dukat and Donald White, were on a contract with the district attorney's office to conduct the investigation. The two investigators and members of the state Department of Taxation and Finance audited revenue collected from the Skaneateles parking meters. The investigation was part of the Crimes Against Revenue Program, which was launched two years ago by the state Division of Criminal Justice Services.

Perkins deferred comments to the Onondaga County District Attorney's office. "It would just be inappropriate for me to comment at this time," Perkins said.

The district attorney's office said it would not make any comment Thursday beyond its news release.

The release stated the investigation was continuing and further charges were possible. In the release, Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick thanked Perkins and his department for their cooperation.

Read the full report in Friday's editon of The Citizen.