MOUNT VERNON, N.Y. (AP) — The Democratic mayor of Mount Vernon has been has been arraigned on criminal charges involving a campaign corruption probe by the state Attorney General's office.

The Journal News reports that Richard Thomas was arraigned Monday after being indicted on grand larceny and filing a false instrument charges.

The 35-year-old Thomas is accused of stealing more than $12,000 from his campaign committee, Friends of Richard Thomas, and lying about it on campaign finance filings.

Thomas' lawyer said the "mayor did nothing wrong criminally" and "never intended to violate the law."

The mayor's officer later released a statement "strongly disputing" the allegations which they described as "claims of a technical nature relating to election law, campaign finance and ethics disclosures."

Thomas was elected the youngest mayor in the city's history in 2015.

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Information from: The Journal News, http://www.lohud.com

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