FBI Charges City Councilor in Corruption Scheme [WATCH]

Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, representing the city’s Seventh District, was arrested on Friday morning by FBI agents on federal corruption charges.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Fernandes Anderson faces one count of theft regarding programs receiving federal funds and five counts of wire fraud, stemming from an alleged scheme to defraud taxpayers.

According to the indictment unsealed on Friday, Fernandes Anderson conspired with a relative who worked on her staff to steal city funds through a kickback scheme.

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Facing financial difficulties after being fined $5,000 by the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission for a conflict of interest violation in 2022, Fernandes Anderson allegedly awarded her relative a $13,000 bonus.

This bonus was more than twice the amount granted to all her other staff members combined.

The DOJ claims that on June 9, 2023, Fernandes Anderson met the relative in a City Hall bathroom, where the relative handed her $7,000 in cash from the bonus.

“Using public office for personal gain is a crime,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Division, in a press release.

“Her behavior, as alleged in today’s indictment, is a slap in the face to the hardworking taxpayers in the city of Boston who have every right to expect that the city’s funds are in good and honest hands. This case illustrates how the FBI and our partners are working hard every day to battle public corruption and the corrosive damage it does to people’s faith in government.”

Each count of wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, while the theft charge could result in a sentence of up to 10 years, according to the DOJ.

Fernandes Anderson, who immigrated from Cape Verde as a child, has been no stranger to controversy during her time on the Boston City Council.

In 2022, a tirade during a council meeting went viral on social media after she shouted, “What the f— do I have to do in this f—ing council in order to get respect as a black woman?”

Tania Fernandes Anderson, a woke BLM Muslim former illegal migrant Democrat serving on the Boston City Council, has been arrested by the FBI after being indicted on five counts of aiding and abetting wire fraud and one count of aiding and abetting theft concerning a program… pic.twitter.com/GxvA2jKgXj

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More recently, she faced backlash for her comments following Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, in which she compared Israeli soldiers to “political animals.”

Additionally, Fernandes Anderson was fined earlier this year by the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission for violating conflict of interest laws.

The commission found that she had improperly hired her sister as director of constituent services and her son as office manager for her council office.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, a fellow Democrat, issued a statement calling for Fernandes Anderson to step down.

“Like any member of the community, Councilor Fernandes Anderson has the right to a fair legal process,” Wu said. “But the serious nature of these charges undermine the public trust and will prevent her from effectively serving the city.”

The arrest and indictment come as the latest in a string of challenges to Fernandes Anderson’s political career, casting doubt on her ability to continue representing Boston’s Seventh District.

The case is expected to proceed in federal court in the coming weeks.

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