Retired State Corruption Investigation Calls For Criminal Investigation Into Mayor Pugh's 'Healthy Holly' Dealings
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A retired state corruption investigator wants a criminal investigation into Mayor Catherine Pugh's business dealings.
A letter was sent to the State Prosecutor's office yesterday, calling for the mayor to be investigated for perjury and criminal misconduct.
"I did a 3.5 year undercover investigation down there," said Jim Cabezas, public corruption investigator.
The retired investigator spent more than 30 years investigating corruption for the State Prosecutor before
"For me this has nothing to do with politics, it has to do with integrity," Cabezas said.
Cabezas wrote a letter to his old boss, Emmet Davitt, the State Prosecutor on Monday. In the letter, he requested a perjury and misconduct case be opened against Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh.
"I think the citizens of Baltimore deserves to know," Cabezas said.
This request comes amid growing concerns Mayor Pugh sold the University of Maryland Medical System, $500,000 worth of her "Healthy Holly" children's books, all while she served on its board- from which she resigned last week.
"She was getting these contracts- my goodness, $500,000 for purportedly providing 80,000 books. I don't know anyone that's found them yet. So you ask yourself, did she also commit a felony theft crime?" Cabezas said.
Mayor Pugh failed to disclose the business dealings and even donated money from her book company to her campaign while many of the books are still unaccounted for.
"Because of what she had done in prior filings, she knew full well that she was mandated to submit an accurate and timely report under penalty of perjury," Cabezas said.
Mayor Pugh's attorney Tuesday dismissed the letter, and said a case has not been opened.
The mayor's spokesperson said she is still in the hospital recovering from pneumonia. WJZ reached out to the State Prosecutor's Office for comment, but have yet to hear back.
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