Sarah Trafton at Columbia-Greene Media reports that an investigation of misconduct by state police based in Catskill that went active at least three times is now closed again. State Police Director of Public Information Beau Duffy said the Internal Affairs Division did not find proof of theft of evidence that allegedly occurred in 2010. Trafton does not explain anything about the alleged misconduct except it involved theft of evidence. The investigation was mentioned in the campaign for Greene County Sheriff last fall between Republicans Peter Kusminsky and Diana Benoit. “I absolutely believe [the informant] and believe he was telling the truth, 100 percent,” Benoit, who lost the election, said in an emailed statement. “I think anytime you have someone questioning the integrity of an evidence locker, the police and the district attorney get nervous. It is because they know if they find that there was a problem, many, many cases can be appealed.” Kusminsky, who won the election, did not start at the Catskill barracks until 2013, three years after the original alleged incident. “It is sad, though, that the hard-working, dedicated men and women serving in the state police were made pawns in a political campaign,” he said of the issue that was being investigated long before he announced his candidacy. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.