An Oahu grand jury returned an indictment this morning charging a former city employee with stealing city money by collecting his pay for hours he was at home.

The indictment charges Patrick Costa with first-degree theft.

State Circuit Judge Steven Alm set bail at $25,000.

Prosecutor David Van Acker told Alm that Costa was a supervisor in the city’s road maintenance division. He said on numerous occasions between Jan. 1, 2010, to April 30, 2012, Costa checked in for work at the city’s Halawa base yard then went home.

Van Acker said investigators for the city ethics commission followed Costa when he drove from the base yard in a city vehicle to his home in Kailua. He said Costa remained at home for hours and sometimes for the rest of his work shift.

The city determined that it paid Costa $45,579 for work that Costa did not perform.