At the Tuesday city council meeting that resulted in a vote for bankruptcy, the city attorney alluded to possibly questionable activities in the city’s budget history. Now, the Sheriff’s office has confirmed that they are investigating the city government.
The department released few details of the actual investigation, but did confirm that the investigation is currently underway. What the investigation is in search for and which aspects of the city government are being targeted wasn’t specified. However, the release did state that the investigation was launched several months ago.
The department issued a release after being apparently overrun with requests from media outlets across the country.
The city has been subject to various investigations in the last few years, including allegations that city officials had rigged bids in the Public Works department. However, those investigations never led to charges.
From the Press Enterprise:
Authorities have announced an ongoing criminal investigation into San Bernardino city government, but Sheriff Rod Hoops said he believes it is unrelated to allegations made by the city attorney in the wake of the city’s bankruptcy decision about falsified financial documents.
A sheriff’s news release issued Thursday evening, July 12, stated: “Several months ago at the request of San Bernardino City officials, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, along with the San Bernardino Police Department and the District Attorney’s Office, began an investigation related to allegations of possible criminal activity within departments of the San Bernardino city government.
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