FBI special agents in Boston arrested City Councilwoman Tania Fernandez Anderson on Friday morning on charges of public corruption.
Fernandez-Anderson is under investigation by federal authorities, and FBI agents saw him taken into custody in front of his Dorchester home Friday morning. According to WCVB.
She is charged with five counts of wire fraud and one count of theft related to programs receiving federal funds, according to court filings from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Federal prosecutors say Fernandez-Anderson defrauded the city by hiring an employee with ties to her in late 2022 and proposing an arrangement in which that person would “receive additional compensation but would rebate most of this bonus.” claims to have worked.
“Since early to mid-2023, Fernandez Anderson has been facing personal financial hardships, including missed monthly rent and car payments, and an impending $5,000 civil penalty from the Ethics Commission.” “As a result, Fernandez-Anderson has a low daily bank balance,” the application said. Obtained by the Boston Globe.
“On June 9, 2023, at approximately 4:11 p.m., Staff A texted Fernandez-Anderson “bathroom,'' stating that Staff A was waiting in the bathroom to give Fernandez-Anderson $7,000 in cash. ” the court documents continued. “Within seconds, Fernandez-Anderson sent a text message to Staff A saying, “Ready,” confirming that he was ready to accept the $7,000 cash kickback from Staff A.
“Shortly after these text messages, Employee A handed approximately $7,000 in cash to Fernandez Anderson in a City Hall bathroom.”
The filing also says Fernandez-Anderson hired two such people in 2022, even though Boston City Council members are not allowed to hire close relatives as paid employees.
Prosecutors said Fernandez-Anderson later fired the two employees and was notified by the Ethics Commission that he would be fined $5,000 in connection with the incident.
And last month, the Massachusetts Office of Elections and Political Finance notified the campaign that it had received donations in excess of legal limits and failed to submit deposit information in a timely manner, WCVB reported.
“Her actions, as alleged in today's indictment, are a slap in the face to Boston's hardworking taxpayers, who have every right to expect their city's funds to be managed with integrity.” said Special Agent in Charge Jody Cohen. In a statement. “This case demonstrates how hard the FBI and our partners work every day to combat public corruption and the corrosive damage it causes to people's trust in government.”
Anderson represents District 7, which includes the Boston suburbs of Roxbury, Dorchester, Fenway and parts of the South End.
“Councilman Anderson was elected to the Boston City Council on November 2, 2021, making him the first African immigrant and Muslim American to be elected to the Boston City Council,” the City of Boston website states. It is written in the biography on the site.
“Before serving on City Council, Tania served as Executive Director of Bowdoin Geneva Main Street, Parent Advocate for Boston Public Schools, Program Manager for a Homeless Women’s Shelter, Business Owner, and Child Social Worker. .While raising two biological children, she is also a foster parent for 17 children,” the bio added.
Anderson is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boston late Friday afternoon.
