One Boston city councilor is out with a statement blasting Ricardo Arroyo for “eagerly” welcoming U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins’ attempts to influence the outcome of last year’s election for Suffolk District Attorney.
Councilor-at-Large Erin Murphy said the alleged ethical violations revealed in Wednesday’s Department of Justice report were “disturbing.” She called for “swift and appropriate consequences” for Councilor Arroyo, saying that city constituents “have a right to more ethical representation.”
Arroyo, in his own statement, said that the bombshell report, while “sad and unfortunate” did not point to any wrongdoing on his part.
“Attempts to influence the outcome of an election by a federal official with as much power as U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins are outrageous,” Murphy said in a Thursday statement. “According to the federal report, residents of Suffolk County had their election tampered with in ways extremely unethical, as well as potentially in violation of state and federal laws. Enough is enough.”
Murphy added that she was “beyond disappointed to read” that her colleague, Councilor Arroyo, “apparently eagerly welcomed Rollins’ election tampering in order to advance his campaign for DA.”
“As an attorney and current representative of Suffolk County residents in District 5, Ricardo Arroyo, quite simply, should have known better,” Murphy said. “This was evidenced and demonstrated by the initiation of an encrypted messaging system, and willful engagement in diversion of our democratic process. He must face swift and appropriate consequences.”
The DOJ report outlines a number of instances where Rollins attempted to tip the scales in favor of Arroyo, her preferred candidate for Suffolk DA, by leaking sensitive information to Globe and Herald reporters.
This, the report states, led to the Boston Globe running pre-primary stories that were damaging to Arroyo’s opponent, then-Interim Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden. The Herald chose not to publish leaked information until after the primary.
Rollins allegedly wrote in one text to Arroyo, “No mercy. Finish him,” and sent another text after Hayden won the election, telling Arroyo, “He will regret the day he did this to you. Watch,” according to the report.
At this time, “Rollins sought to damage Hayden’s reputation” by leaking information to reporters at both the Herald and the Globe “non-public and sensitive DOJ information that suggested the possibility of a federal criminal investigation into Hayden, a matter from which Rollins was recused,” the report stated.
In a Wednesday statement, Arroyo said Rollins has been a friend of his “since before either of us were elected officials,” and that he often sought her advice and counsel for “various aspects of my life and career.”
“I find this matter to be incredibly sad and unfortunate,” Arroyo said. “I was never contacted or notified about the Rollins investigation by the Inspector General or Special Counsel. I have reviewed the reports released by their respective offices and neither of these reports allege any wrongdoing on my part.
“My focus remains on working for the residents of District 5.”
Rollins announced Tuesday that she would be submitting her resignation to President Biden by the end of the week, upon notification of the report’s impending release the next day.
The scathing report was prompted by Rollins’ ill-advised appearance at a Democratic National Committee fundraiser attended by First Lady Jill Biden last summer. This was first reported and photographed by the Herald as a potential violation of the Hatch Act.