1srelluc
Diamond Member
Boston councillor arrested by FBI over ‘kickback scheme’ bribe to her relative
A Boston councillor accused of lining her own pockets with bonus payments to a relative has been arrested outside her home.
WCVB5 - ABC
A Boston councilor accused of lining her own pockets with bonus payments to a relative has been arrested outside her home.
Tania Fernandes Anderson, 45, was detained on five counts of wire fraud and one count of theft concerning a program receiving federal funds, Joshua Levy, a Massachusetts attorney, announced at a news conference.
“These six felony charges stem from an alleged kickback scheme that she orchestrated to obtain several thousand dollars in taxpayer money in exchange for a bribe she paid to a staffer who she gave a very large bonus,” Mr Levy said.
The councilor is alleged to have kept $7,000 from a $13,000 bonus payment made to a relative she had hired in late 2022 as a paid member of the council’s staff.
The 11-page indictment says the alleged handover of cash was organized by text message and took place in a City Hall bathroom in June 2023.
It is alleged that Ms Fernandes Anderson “falsely told her staff that ‘Staff Member A’ would be getting a larger bonus than her other staff members” because of “prior volunteer work”.
After taxes, the staffer received about $10,000 in her bank account. She withdrew the money in several transactions in May and June of 2023 before they are said to have made the exchange.
Tania Fernandes Anderson had previously told media she had no intention of stepping down amid the FBI investigation - John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Stephen Kelleher, the FBI agent in charge of the case, said: “Basically, what we have here is an elected official pretending her motives were purely civic-minded.
“In fact, we believe she was unlawfully conspiring to enrich herself. This city councillor is accused of stealing thousands of dollars from the city, through not just creative, but criminal accounting.”
Footage captured by WCVB, a local broadcaster, showed the 45-year-old’s home being surrounded by FBI agents on Friday.
She was filmed leaving the property before briefly putting her hands up and then being detained by agents.
Ms Fernandes Anderson was facing financial difficulties, according to Mr Levy, partly because the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission had told her it would seek a $5,000 fine from her for hiring immediate family members to work in her office.
$115,000 salary
Her $103,500 annual salary as a councillor had been bumped up to $115,000 in January, the Boston Herald reported.more:
Who is Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson's husband Tanzerious?
Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson was arrested Friday morning for federal fraud charges.
www.newsweek.com
Bribes, kickbacks, murder, and corruption is how business is done in black political circles.
I’m just glad someone had the integrity to do something about this disgusting bitch.
Surprised, but glad.
She became an American citizen 5 years ago. Interesting woman, she hired her sister and son to work in her office after she was elected. They notified her that was illegal so she quickly fired them, got a fellow council member to hire them and she hired the fellow council member's family to her staff. Rules and laws are to be worked around.
ETA: Here is madam councilperson giving a hot, foul and loud speech in a council meeting. Looks like she may have used some of the funds on breast enhancement. BTW she has a public defender.
Clown World.
