HANNIBAL, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Former Hannibal Fire Chief Chris Emmons and his father, Carl Emmons Sr., were arrested for stealing over $20K combined from the fire company with profits they illegally made from a go-kart racing track, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli announced.
Chris Emmons had tried to start a go-kart track business on his property, and in 2016, he convinced the Hannibal Fire Company to pay to build a track on its property, which could raise money and take the place of the company’s bingo nights.
The fire company ended up spending $35,000 to build Hannibal Kartway. The track operated on weekends from 2017 to 2022 and was run by Chris Emmons.
Profits from race registrations and pit fees were supposed to go to the fire company. Profits from rentals, raffles, membership dues and concessions were then supposed to go towards track operation and maintenance.
An audit by DiNapoli’s office found that after 2020, Chris Emmons kept registration fees and stopped depositing money into the Kartway bank account. Overall, he failed to turn over $18,000 from the track to the fire company, the comptroller’s office said.
Carl Emmons Sr., a volunteer fire fighter with the company, also helped Chris Emmons run the track and had access to Kartway’s bank account.
Within days after being contacted by auditors from DiNapoli’s office in October 2022, Emmons Sr. closed the Kartway bank account and transferred the remaining balance of $2,522 into his personal bank account. The next day, Emmons Sr. told auditors the track was going to shut down permanently.
Chris Emmons was charged with grand larceny in the third degree, offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree and falsifying business records in the first degree. He will appear in court on March 12.
Emmons Sr. was charged with grand larceny in the fourth degree and given a desk appearance ticket. He is due in court on March 5.
