Former Skaneateles Police Chief Jack McNeil avoided jail time but must pay back every nickel and dime he stole from parking meters in the Village of Skaneateles.

Thursday morning, McNeil, of 86 W. Genesee St., Skaneateles, pleaded guilty before Judge William Walsh in Onondaga County Court for stealing parking meter money from the village from January 2003 to May 2005, said Patrick Quinn, Onondaga County chief district attorney.

McNeil's indictment states that he stole a little less than $27,000 but Quinn said he confessed to stealing more than $3,000. Quinn and McNeil's Syracuse attorney, Emil Rossi, will try to determine an exact figure next week.

McNeil pleaded guilty to a felony charge of third-degree grand larceny and the misdemeanors of defrauding the government and official misconduct.

McNeil was sentenced to a three-year conditional discharge and must pay restitution to the village.

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

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

For more on this story, read Friday's edition of The Citizen.