BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo responded to calls for his resignation over his ties to US Attorney Rachael Rollins Thursday, telling 7NEWS he has done nothing wrong and is not resigning.
“Two federal bodies have done full investigations and the two reports — I’ve had the time to review them now — neither one of them accused me of any wrongdoing,” Arroyo said outside his home in Hyde Park. “I’ve done nothing wrong and so, I’m absolutely not resigning.”
Arroyo’s 2022 campaign to become Suffolk County District Attorney was a major part of the recent federal investigations into Rollins. In its report, the Department of Justice’s Inspector General said Rollins and Arroyo exchanged dozens of messages about his campaign and about leaks of harmful information about Arroyo’s opponent, Kevin Hayden.
As Rollins prepares to resign her position, Boston City Councilor At-Large Erin Murphy has been among those saying Arroyo should himself think about resigning.
“He should seriously consider stepping down,” Murphy said Thursday. “I think he should ask himself if he is the right person in this moment to meet the needs of the people of District 5 and also in the city of Boston.”
Arroyo, who represents Boston’s District 5 on the City Council, said the DOJ’s report supports his statement that he did nothing wrong.
“The report was very clear that I never asked her to do those things and I never knew that these things were happening,” Arroyo said.
Rollins previously served as the Suffolk County District Attorney before her appointment as U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts prompted a race for the DA position.
Arroyo and Hayden were both running in the race.
Though Hayden ultimately won, the recent reports from the DOJ’s Inspector General and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel said Rollins tried to plant the idea that Hayden was under federal investigation by leaking sensitive information to the media.
Rollins’ lawyer told the Associated Press on Tuesday that Rollins would resign this week.
Investigation findings were disclosed on Wednesday.
In the aftermath of the recent investigations, the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a conservative organization, is joining in calling for Arroyo’s resignation while also pushing for the state to investigate.
“This is using the levers of government — a very powerful, maybe the most powerful position in the state of Massachusetts – to conduct a witch-hunt against your political opponent,” said Fiscal Alliance spokesperson Paul Craney. “That’s, in our opinion, pretty corrupt.”
Boston City Council President Ed Flynn has also responded.
“Recent reports and troubling information has once again cast a shadow over the Boston City Council,” he said in a statement. “…This is hurting our city at a critical time, and the residents of Boston deserve better.”
Arroyo said he hasn’t spoken to Rollins since reports came out. But he is disappointed with the findings.
“Rachael is somebody who was a deep and personal friend, still is,” he said. “Somebody who I have spoken to and known prior to elected office. Somebody who I have had many conversations with about my life, my career and things in between.”
“When it comes to the accusations before her, I find them incredibly sad and I think that the outcome is incredibly sad,” he continued.
Arroyo said he additionally hasn’t spoken to any other members of the city council about calls for his resignation, though he suggested such calls may be politically motivated with redistricting of Boston’s city council districts currently underway.
Rollins is expected to formally resign at some point on Friday.
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