Massachusetts state Rep. Christopher Flanagan accused of stealing $36,000 for personal use, including "psychic services"
Massachusetts State Representative Christopher Flanagan was arrested Friday and accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars "to fund personal and political expenses," including "psychic services."
Flanagan, 37, of Dennis, was indicted on five counts of wire fraud and one count of falsification of records. He pleaded not guilty to all of the charges in federal court in Boston Friday afternoon and was released.
Christopher Flanagan indictment
In addition to his role as a state representative, Flanagan was also the executive officer of a Home Builders Association (HBA) on Cape Cod. According to the U.S. Attorney, that job paid him up to $81,600, as of last year, in addition to his state salary of $100,945.
Despite the two jobs, U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said Flanagan was "facing personal financial difficulty, with thousands of dollars in outstanding credit card debt, missing mortgage payments and hundreds of dollars in bank overdraft fees."
The indictment alleges that he stole a total of $36,000 from the HBA from November 2021 to January 2023 through five different wire transfers.
Money for campaign and "personal psychic services"
"In one instance, in January 2023, Flanagan allegedly stole $10,000 from HBA in order to fund his campaign account for State Representative," Foley said. "Flanagan also stole hundreds of dollars via direct debit transactions from the association's bank account funds to pay for personal psychic services in July 2022."
Investigators said Flanagan then logged into the HBA's bookkeeping software using someone else's account and listed the expenses as office supplies, travel and bank charges. He also allegedly created two fake expense reports.
The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance also investigated Flanagan's campaign. They claim Flanagan, a Democrat, made up a person named "Jeanne Louise" and told them she was part of a conservative group that was endorsing him. That "group" then sent out mailers to potential voters promoting his campaign.
Foley called the charges against Flanagan "an appalling breach of public trust."
"Mr. Flanagan defrauded the very organization he was supposed to serve - allegedly funneling tens of thousands of dollars into his own pockets to pay off personal bills, buy luxury items and bankroll his political campaign. He allegedly stole money and then went to extraordinary lengths to cover it up, going so far as fabricating fake personas to mislead those who questioned his conduct," Foley said in a statement Friday.
Flanagan had no comment on the charges Friday. He is due back in court for a status hearing on May 22.
"He's looking forward to getting back to seeing his wife and his three kids, and to recuperating," his defense attorney Greg Henning told reporters. "He's been dealing with some significant health issues, he had heart surgery last week."
Flanagan was first elected in 2022. He represents Dennis, Yarmouth and Brewster on Cape Cod.
In a statement, the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Cape Cod said it is, "grateful for the diligence of the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts for their investigation into a former employee."
Call to resign
Gov. Maura Healey on Friday morning called on Flanagan to resign.
"These are serious allegations against Representative Flanagan that threaten to undermine the important work of the Legislature and cast doubt on his ability to faithfully serve his constituents. He should resign," Healey said in a statement.
House Minority Leader Brad Jones, a Republican from North Reading, said Flanagan's arrest was "disturbing but not surprising" because they've known about the investigation for "several months."
"Now that a court case is moving forward, it is clear what must be done. Representative Flanagan has betrayed his oath of office, and I am urging him to do the right thing for his constituents by resigning immediately. If he refuses to do so, then Speaker Mariano should immediately authorize and direct the House Ethics Committee to begin proceedings in this matter."
