A former Dunkirk city employee appeared in court virtually Tuesday afternoon in regard to his arrest for allegedly stealing public and donated funds.

Hector Rosas of Silver Creek was charged last month with two counts of third-degree grand larceny and two counts of public corruption, which are Class C felonies.

Rosas is currently in Puerto Rico and had a court date scheduled before Judge Stephen Cass. He was given permission to appear virtually as long as his attorney was present, which he was. Rosas is being represented by Barry Covert with Lipsitz, Green, Scime, and Cambria law firm in Buffalo.

District Attorney Jason Schmidt, who is prosecuting the case, said the purpose of the hearing is for his office to formally put on record the evidence that they plan on using in court for trial. The defense has until Sept. 11 to make motions against any evidence. The prosecution can then respond during an Omnibus hearing, which is set for Sept. 25.

Schmidt said Rosas is not out on bail, but rather on his own recognizance. “Because he’s not charged with a violent felony crime, it’s non-bailable offense,” he said.

SSchmidt added there were no conditions on his release, which is why Rosas is legally permitted to be in Puerto Rico. He added that he believes Rosas is in Puerto Rico for some personal matters.

On May 19, Schmidt and state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli issued a joint statement saying Rosas had been charged.

In 2017, Rosas, who was Dunkirk’s Festivals Coordinator, oversaw fundraising efforts to aid the people of Puerto Rico in recovering from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria. Rosas collected nearly $15,000 in donations from citizens, schools and civic groups. The investigation revealed that all of these funds were transferred by Rosas from the city’s festivals bank account, which he controlled, to his personal bank account. Although Rosas visited his mother’s home in Puerto Rico and spent some of the funds, he could produce no receipts, nor could he account for the money collected.

“Rosas allegedly used his position to steal donations meant to help Hurricane Maria victims and divert funds meant to benefit his community into his own pockets,” State Comptroller DiNapoli said, at the time of the arrest.

In a separate matter, from the summer of 2016 to the summer of 2019, Rosas was responsible for collecting and depositing cash generated from beer sales at the annual summer festivals. Officials said the investigation revealed that over $42,000 in cash sales were collected by Rosas but never reported or deposited in the festivals account.

“Dunkirk city, like many of our local municipalities here in Chautauqua County, is engaged in an every-day battle to service its residents with precious little money. City residents, themselves, and most of us here in Chautauqua County, live paycheck to paycheck. Every dollar stolen is a dollar not spent servicing our community. No one should use their public office for personal gain,” Schmidt said at the time of Rosas’ arrest.

Hector Rosas is the brother of current Dunkirk Mayor Wilfred Rosas.