By William Tauro
A complaint was sought and evidence presented this past week with the Boston Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Anti-Corruption Unit, asking the Bureau to pursue charges against Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone with allegations accusing the six term mayor of racketeering and extortion.
The multiple allegations against the Mayor are stemming back to several stalled development deals within the City of Somerville – accusing the Mayor of “shaking down” property owners, forcing/extorting property owners to use his own connected (favored) developers, racketeering, and tampering with an MBTA property bidding process, while depriving a Somerville (bowling alley) property owner of his rights.
In the case of the bowling alley, the Mayor and a local real estate developer are named as approaching and allegedly attempting to deprive the property owner of his rights with respect to his fifty-year old bowling alley business/property and attempting to bypass a state mandated bidding process, then allegedly trying to bribe the property owner to vacate the property by offering him a 2% limited partnership share in the real estate development involving a predated paperwork-packet of the $70 million dollar, pre-bid, multiple-unit real estate development deal.
Allegations were also were made that Mayor Curtatone deliberately closed a highway off-ramp of McGrath Highway to deprive local businesses of potential automobile traffic in an attempt to starve them of business after an alleged failed attempt to buy out and take over the business owner’s properties.
Additional allegations were were also made and charges being sought against a high-ranking DPW Administrator and two Somerville affiliates of another local news publication, who allegedly conspired with Mayor Curtatone. Along with multiple allegations of witness intimidation and extortion by attempting to slander the Somerville News Weekly and it’s publishers/contributors at the request of the Mayor – most likely attempting to discredit them and stop them from publicizing any bad press and exposing damaging information regarding scandals by Mayor Curtatone and his Administration over the past three years, especially during this current election campaign cycle.
The unnamed DPW Administrator, along with the local affiliates of the other news publication including that paper’s publisher, are being accused of allegedly using fictitious social media aliases over the past two years in order to carry out the plan ordered by the Mayor. Coupled with an online assault on social media platforms, various slanderous accusations were published by the two affiliates in their newspaper to further broadcast harassment and fabricated propaganda to intimidate the Somerville News Weekly publisher in exchange for being later compensated by the Mayor with exclusive real estate broker listings to the previously mentioned development deals, as well as the majority of the City of Somerville’s lucrative legal ads for their newspaper – all at the taxpayers expense.
The allegations are being brought forward by a group of property owners, along with another newspaper publisher this past Friday in Boston.
The allegations go on to accuse Mayor Curtatone and the DPW Administrator of attempting to sway multiple real estate deals with abuse of power via an elaborate real estate scheme that involves racketeering and extortion of multi-million dollar land deals in Somerville.
These allegations also involve a former Somerville alderman/local attorney, as well as two current Ward Aldermen.
It all started back over two years ago with when the Somerville News Weekly first published and exposed the City of Somerville Department of Public Works with a story regarding an article written about an “ALLEGED SOMERVILLE DPW OVERTIME SCANDAL” that lead up to a six part story series on multiple Somerville stalled developments and corruption within the Curtatone Administration.
Even amongst all the overwhelming evidence presented in last years Somerville News Weekly “Alleged Somerville DPW Overtime Scandal” story, no arrests, no terminations, or reprimands have been ordered by the Curtatone Administration.
Mayor Curtatone is facing two opponents in this coming primary in September.
The Somerville News Weekly is urging Mayor Curtatone, his DPW Administrator and the two ward aldermen to step down amidst these allegations.
This story is still developing while the FBI’s Anti-Corruption and the FBI Online Forensic Unit conducts further investigations and seeks Federal warrants into this matter.
If you or anyone you know have fallen victim to this or any similar stalled development scandal deal please feel free to contact me at the Somerville News Weekly at Somervillenewsweekly@yahoo.com or 617-293-2016 and I will assist to guide you through the filing a complaint process. All calls will remain strictly confidential.
You can also contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation directly at (857)386-2000 and refer to this article to file your complaint.
Below are a list of prior articles referenced in these allegations)
Letter to the Editor: Re Alleged Somerville DPW Overtime Scandal
Concern Over Stalled Developments in Somerville:Where Are All Our Tax Base Dollars Going?
Somerville’s Stalled Developments/The Cash Cow “Show Me The Money” Part II
Stalled Developments/ Somerville’s Cash Cow Part III / The Plot Scheme Thickens
Stalled Developments PartV /Let’s Re-Open the McGrath Highway Offramp
