Ex-detective charged $25K on another’s card, police say
Collington previously admitted to stealing from Troy police union
Colonie A retired Troy detective who is on interim probation for stealing funds from the city police union he once led was arrested Wednesday for allegedly running up more than $25,000 in hotel bills on another person’s credit card, town police said.
Aaron Collington, 52, of Ninth Street, Troy, was arrested at the Rensselaer County Probation Department on a warrant for thirddegree grand larceny nearly a month after he had been asked through his attorneys to surrender, police said.
Collington is accused of using the credit card 26 times between March and October at the Homewood Suites on Wolf Road, resulting in unauthorized charges of $25,549, Lt. Robert Winn said.
Collington had told the acquaintance that he needed to stay briefly at a hotel due to asbestos and other issues
where he was living, Winn said.
Collington was arraigned before Town Justice Norman C. Massry and released. A guilty conviction for thirddegree grand larceny can carry a sentence of up to seven years in prison.
This is the second time that Collington has been arrested on charges of the theft of money. The first time came in October 2017, when he was charged with stealing $6,200 from the Troy Police Benevolent Association. Collington was president of the union, which represents the department’s 118 officers, sergeants and detectives.
The Troy PBA filed the complaint against Collington after finding discrepancies in its financial records. Collington used the $6,200 to pay his rent, according to the police complaint. In 2017, Collington earned $79,926 working for the city. Collington repaid the union.
Collington pleaded guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny and admitted to stealing the $6,200. He struck a deal to avoid prison time and that placed him on a one-year term of interim probation since March 3. Part of the plea agreement was that he stay out of trouble while under the supervision of the county Probation Department. Collington retired as a detective before pleading guilty.
The Albany County district attorney ’s office was assigned as special prosecutor for Collington’s case after thenRensselaer County District Attorney Joel Abelove recused his office.