FBI and IRS agents raided city hall and the homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh Thursday morning.
They also took documents from the office of the first term Democrat’s personal attorney, Steven Silverman. In a statement, Silverman said he received a limited subpoena for Pugh’s original financial records.
Documents also were taken from the Maryland Center for Adult Training, a nonprofit Pugh once led. Earlier this week, ex officio Mayor Jack Young confirmed he fired three of Pugh’s aides--Gary Brown Jr., Poetri Deal and Afra Vance-White—who are listed as board members on the center’s website.
During a news conference Wednesday, Young said only that their services were no longer necessary. He said Thursday the raids were “embarrassing” and that he was concentrating on keeping the city running.
Shortly after news of the raids broke, Governor Larry Hogan issued a statement demanding Pugh resign. “Mayor Pugh has lost the public trust. She is clearly not fit to lead,” he said.
“We can’t waste any more time on this issue,” Councilman Brandon Scott said in a statement. “There are many important issues in front of us that require the complete attention of a full time mayor.”
The entire city council called for her resignation earlier this month.
Pugh has been on indefinite leave since April 1, citing attempts to recover from pneumonia.
Federal agents also served a subpoena on The University of Maryland Medical System Thursday.
Pugh won a no-bid contract to sell the hospital network 100,000 of her Healthy Holly children’s books for $500,000 while she served on its board several years ago.
Pugh also struck up a book deal worth around $100,000 with Kaiser Permanente, at a time when the health care provider was seeking a $48 million dollar contract with the city. They were later awarded that contract.
The nonprofit Associated Black Charities has said it collected nearly $90,000 from different entities to purchase and distribute 10,000 copies of Pugh’s books.
The Baltimore Sun’s March reporting on the UMMS deals sparked widespread outcry throughout the city. Governor Hogan asked the Maryland Office of the State Prosecutor to investigate Pugh’s deals with UMMS on April 1st.
Despite calls from state and city officials for her resignation, Pugh’s office said she “fully intends to return.”
