Brian DePena ran for mayor of Lawrence, Massachusetts, on a platform of “integrity.” On Friday, the FBI arrested him for allegedly looting $1.5 million in COVID relief money to bankroll his campaign and pay off his own mortgages. The Democrat mayor — who went viral last year for struggling to speak English and often requires a translator — now faces federal wire fraud and money laundering charges, The Daily Wire reports.
“Mayor DePena was elected to be a leader for the City of Lawrence. He was looked up to and trusted by his constituents, but he betrayed that trust through his alleged corruption and lies,” said U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Today’s arrest is just another example of our determination to root out fraud by anyone, even public officials and holding elected officials accountable.”
According to court documents, DePena, 61, treated the government’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans — pandemic relief meant to keep struggling small businesses alive — as a personal slush fund. Loans obtained by his business, Tenares Tire Services, allegedly went to fund his campaign, pay his taxes and pay down $880,000 on various property mortgages.
The numbers are brazen. From one round of $350,000 in loans, DePena allegedly used $85,000 to pay off personal tax debts, moved $120,000 into a personal account and wrote checks totaling $90,000 to “The Committee to Elect Brian DePena.” Before the cash arrived, that account held just over $20. Let that sink in.
Then came the bigger haul. In October 2021, the Small Business Administration approved another round of loans, and $1,154,188 landed in the Tenares Tire Services account — money transferred the same day into DePena’s personal bank account, which held only $1,401. Of those funds, another $42,000 went to his mayoral campaign and $883,293 paid off debts on properties he owned in Lawrence, prosecutors alleged. If convicted, he faces over 20 years in prison and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.
DePena, born in the Dominican Republic, was first elected in 2021 promising “citizen-centered” government and was re-elected in 2025. Despite decades in the United States and elected office in a city that is about 83% Hispanic, he told a local outlet in 2022, “I practice my English because it’s very important in America.” At an unrelated court appearance last year — one revolving around his effort to shield the acting police chief during an investigation — he made headlines by requesting a translator. He does not yet have a lawyer in the federal case.
This is a window into what happens when one-party machine politics runs a city: a mayor allegedly pockets seven figures of taxpayer relief meant for devastated small businesses, funnels it into his own re-election, and cruises to a second term anyway. The pandemic money is long gone. The accountability, at least, has finally arrived.
Source: dailywire.com