COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A former Council Bluffs candidate for mayor has been charged with stealing vending machines in Nebraska.

Online court records say 33-year-old Matthew Hartfield has pleaded not guilty to a dozen misdemeanor counts of theft. His trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 31 in Douglas County Court.

The thefts started occurring in November. Police say sometimes a well-dressed man would enter an Omaha store, measure a machine and take it, saying he’d bring back a larger machine.

The vending machines’ owner estimated his loss at $10,000.

The Daily Nonpareil reports (http://bit.ly/2hRAcrI ) that Hartfield ran for mayor in 2009 and was beaten by incumbent Tom Hanafan.