EVERETT, MASS. (WHDH) - Everett’s city council is calling on the state’s top prosecutor to help get money back from Mayor Carlo DeMaria.
The council passed several pieces of legislation intended to force DeMaria to return hundreds of thousands of dollars that he was not supposed to have, and now they’re calling on Attorney General Andrea Campbell to help get the job done.
In March, the council unanimously passed a vote of no confidence in DeMaria after a report from the inspector general found that he was being paid an additional $180,000 in bonus, money which he tried to hide.
The mayor’s administration said these findings are “unsupported” and “lack foundation”.
Investigators also said DeMaria received longevity payments between 2016 and 2021; the council has abolished longevity bonuses as a result.
One of the city councilors said DeMaria encouraged them last week to involve Campbell.
“AG Campbell, the ball is now in your court,” Councilor Stephanie Smith said. “The mayor said on televised TV, ‘bring in the AG’. This is now bringing in the AG. So, you get what you wished for.”
The city council has also hired an independent auditing firm to look into all payments made to DeMaria since 2016 and demanded he stop using city funds to pay for his lawyers.
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