State Gov. Kathy Hochul in Dunkirk in 2023.

At least one area state official is taking aim at Gov. Kathy Hochul after a former Dunkirk treasurer’s arrest on Friday.

In a statement to The Post-Journal and OBSERVER, Sen. George Borrello said a $13.7 million loan by New York state to the city of Dunkirk in June did more lots more harm than good. “The governor is now complicit in the corruption in the City Of Dunkirk,” said the Sunset Bay Republican. “She purposely derailed our control board legislation in favor of saddling the city with more debt. The time is now for the governor to stand with us and support a control board so that the people of the City Of Dunkirk can have faith restored in their government.”

Borrello’s renewed call for a control board also has the support of state Assemblyman Andrew Molitor and Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel. When word of the loan was made public, both state officials criticized the plan.

“The governor’s response is more money — without conditions, oversight, or a plan to fix the dysfunction,” Borrello and Molitor said in June. “We firmly believe this step will only perpetuate this ongoing crisis. A better solution would be for the Senate and Assembly to pass our legislation establishing a financial control board, which would provide the oversight, structure, and accountability that is clearly and desperately needed. It would help protect taxpayers and restore fiscal order.”

Friday’s charges against Mark Woods were announced by comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and county District Attorney Jason Schmidt. Woods was arraigned on charges of second-degree grand larceny, first-degree corrupting the government, and 12 counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree in Chautauqua County Supreme Court before Supreme Court Justice Grace M. Hanlon.

Dunkirk’s financial mess came to light in March 2024 when it was having trouble paying its bills. Since then the city’s deficit has been said to be between $15 million and $20 million and led to an 84% tax increase in 2025 for property owners. Another deficit was recorded in 2025, according to a recent city Finance Committee meeting.

Woods was elected as treasurer by city voters for more than two decades.

Since the fiscal crisis, Borrello and Molitor remain committed to making a control board happen. “This latest revelation only reinforces the fact that Dunkirk’s problems are not isolated or incidental. They are deep-rooted and systemic,” the pair said on Friday. “The city’s finances are in disarray, and a lack of effective oversight and internal controls has allowed mismanagement and, allegedly, criminal conduct to fester for far too long.”

In May 2023, another joint investigation between the state Comptroller and District Attorney resulted in the indictment and arrest of the former city of Dunkirk Festivals Coordinator Hector Rosas for abusing his position to steal more than $50,000. That case is currently pending.

Also, in 2012, an audit found more than $27,000 was found missing from the city’s development department while Richard Frey was mayor. No charges were ever filed.