Detroit, MI

Another bribery scandal hits Detroit. It involves the People Mover

Published

1 month ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Another bribery scandal hits Detroit. It involves the People Mover

A former Detroit People Mover official is accused of accepting $300,000 in bribes.
The official allegedly approved phony invoices for IT work that was never performed.
The businessman who submitted the invoices owned a home restoration company with no IT experience.

More than a decade ago, a juror in a Detroit public corruption trial that ended with three men getting convicted in a $97 million bribery scheme exclaimed: “Hopefully this is the end of this nightmare … this is a whole new beginning.”

It didn’t quite go that way as the following years saw two city councilmen indictments, a dozen school principal bribery convictions, a towing scandal, as well as a toxic dirt and demolition fiasco.

And now there’s this.

In a new criminal filing in U.S. District Court, a former city official in charge of the Detroit People Mover shuttle is charged with taking $300,000 in bribes from a businessmen who reportedly billed the city for work that was never performed — all with the help of his connected associate.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday, June 2 in U.S. District Court, the alleged scheme involves 55-year-old Michael Anderson, a former director with the Detroit Transportation Corporation, who allegedly helped Detroit businessman Terrence Parker bill the city for nearly $305,000 in information technology work that was never performed.

Moreover, court records show, Parker’s company has no experience with IT work, but rather performs restoration work on homes damaged by storms and natural disasters. Still, the FBI says, Parker managed to submit 22 phony invoices to the DTC for IT work, including fixing computer monitors — and got paid for all of it. That’s because Anderson was approving his phony invoices from the inside, the government says, and getting money in exchange for his help.

Anderson and Parker both are charged with conspiracy and federal program theft/bribery and face up to 10 years in prison, if convicted. They were released on bond following their initial appearances in U.S. District Court. Their court-appointed lawyer could not be reached for comment.

According to the complaint, Anderson, who was hired by the city in 2022, was in charge of overseeing People Mover operations until he was fired in April for conduct unrelated to the pending criminal case. Parker owns a business called Total Care Restoration (TCR), which performs restoration work on homes damaged by fire, water, windstorms, or other elements.

According to the government, Parker was billing the DTC for information technology services, even though his company has no experience in that field, nor has it ever submitted a bid proposal to the city for such work, or signed any contract with the DTC.

Still, the government alleges, between 2023-25, the DTC paid nearly $305,000 to TCR for 23 invoices it had submitted, 22 of those invoices charged for IT services.

“Anderson approved the invoices and Parker deposited the checks into TCR’s bank account. TCR did not submit any invoices or receive any payments before Anderson was hired as Procurement Director. Likewise, TCR did not submit any invoices or receive any payments after Anderson was fired as Procurement Director,” the complaint states.

According to the government, Anderson did actually procure and manage IT contracts with a number of companies while he worked for the DTC. But TCR was billing the city for work that those companies had been contracted to do.

“At least six TCR invoices listed work that was actually contracted to (another company),” an FBI agent wrote in his affidavit attached to the criminal complaint.

Also noteworthy, the FBI agent writes: “Most of TCR’s invoices contained a charge for debris removal. In my experience, debris removal is a common line item for restoration projects but not for IT work.”

According to the complaint, the FBI figured out that Parker was funneling money to Anderson by reviewing their bank records, and noticing that their deposits and withdrawals coincided. For example, on Aug. 16, 2024, Parker deposited a DTC check for $23,934 and withdrew $18,000 cash. That same day and over the next several days, Anderson made cash deposits into his account for $1,500, $1,300, $1,000, $700 and $1,850.

“There is probable cause to believe that Parker paid Anderson a portion of the money from the TCR invoices,” the FBI agent writes.

Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com

Source link

Click to comment

Detroit, MI

Detroit Sandwich Party returns to Eastern Market on Sept. 6

Published

6 hours ago

July 13, 2026

Press Room

Detroit Sandwich Party returns to Eastern Market on Sept. 6

(WXYZ) — The third annual Detroit Sandwich Party is coming to Eastern Market on Labor Day weekend, bringing a massive free festival for sandwich lovers.

The festival is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 6 at Eastern Market. It’s organized by Carlos Parisi, Will McDowell and Bekah Galang.

Watch our 2025 interview with Carlos in the video below

Detroit Sandwich Party returns to Eastern Market with an expansion on Aug. 31

Organizers are looking for vendors, volunteers and sponsors for the 2026 event. You can learn more and sign up to be a vendor, volunteer or sponsor here.

The event is free to enter, and each vendor will be selling smaller-sized sandwiches for purchase, so people can try as many sandwiches as they want.

Below are some sandwiches from the 2025 festival from Leña, Tall Trees Cafe, Bar Chenin and more

WXYZ

Source link

Detroit, MI

Around 400 pairs of shoes intended for charity giveaway stolen from Detroit nonprofit, organization says

Published

18 hours ago

July 12, 2026

Press Room

Shoes intended for an annual charity giveaway in Detroit were recently stolen from a local nonprofit organization’s warehouse. Now, the group is asking for your help.

NW Goldberg Cares was set to give away 1,000 pairs of sneakers at its annual Hoopfest, a community event tied to Mayor Mary Sheffield’s “Occupy the Summer” initiative, but on Friday, the nonprofit’s founder made a surprising discovery at their warehouse.

“I just happened to notice that something seemed very off about how many shoes were in the warehouse. Sure enough, I went to the back of the facility, saw a bunch of big boxes, as well as some bags that previously had sneakers in it, completely empty,” Daniel Washington, founder and executive director, NW Goldberg Cares, said.

Washington says a person or group stole about 400 pairs of shoes.

“From the looks of it, it looks like they were somehow able to pry up the door on the backside of the building, crawl underneath, and while somebody else was in, somebody was able to hand shoes out underneath the door,” he said.

Washington says a report was filed with the Detroit Police Department, but so far, they don’t have any leads.

“DPD staff is working on the case right now. We’ve been in contact with several sergeants on the issue, and at this point, we’re just hoping for some type of information on it or recovery of some sort,” Washington said.

The custom-designed brand shoes were donated by Social Status Detroit and USA Basketball. The value is more than $40,000.

“Depending on what shoes you’re talking about, you could go as up to $45,000 to $75,000. Because again, shoes, depending, were as much as $220 a shoe. So, a lot of loss,” Washington said.

Since the news broke, the community has stepped up to help.

“We have about over 130 pairs of individual shoes that were donated via our Amazon wish list, which has truly helped us in so many ways because, you know, without those types of donations, without people stepping up, you know, we would be up a creek without a paddle, as they say,” Washington said.

Hoopfest gives hope to kids and teens.

“For so many kids across this great city, they might not have ever had a brand new pair of shoes, right? Money is tight in the household, and at the end of the day, we want to give them that level of confidence or give them that little boost to say, ‘Hey, you deserve the experience of opening up a brand new pair of shoes,’” Washington said.

Washington shared the following final message with CBS News Detroit on Sunday:

“I encourage anybody who needs help, just reach out before you make it or do an act like this that compromises the integrity of an event like ours. Just reach out. Say, ‘We need help.’ Express your needs. Say, ‘Hey, we’d love some support in this way. Is there any way we could work alongside you?’”

The nonprofit founder says they’re resilient and they’re not going to let the incident stop Hoopfest from being a success. The event runs Friday through Sunday at Curtis Jones Park.

In:

Source link

Detroit, MI

Three dead in Metro Detroit mall shootings in eight days: What we know

Published

1 day ago

July 12, 2026

Press Room

Three dead in Metro Detroit mall shootings in eight days: What we know

Three people are dead and at least two others wounded after shootings broke out at Metro Detroit shopping malls just eight days apart.

The shootings all involved young adults, ages 19-22, who carried weapons, at least one lawfully.

At Great Lakes Crossing Outlets in Auburn Hills on Saturday, a Pontiac man was killed and a woman injured in the food court after an altercation that occurred in a bathroom rekindled in the food court.

In Dearborn, Cameron Watkins and Keonte Seaborn, both 19 and of Detroit, were killed on July 3 at Fairlane Town Center after a July 3 altercation involving three others.

Keianna Hundley, Keonte’s mother, decried the violence that took her son just two years after he graduated from high school.

“Seeing him walk across the stage with a big smile meant everything to me,” Hundley said. “I don’t wish the pain I feel on any parent.”

Great Lakes Crossing mall shooting Saturday

Auburn Hills police said they were patrolling Great Lakes Crossing Outlets at about 5:20 p.m. when they received reports of shots fired in the food court.

A 22-year-old Detroit man and a 20-year-old Pontiac man had an altercation inside the food court restroom at Great Lakes Crossing Outlets earlier. After 5 p.m. Saturday, the Pontiac man, then with another individual, saw and attacked the Detroit man, who had a license to carry a concealed weapon.

The Detroit man fired on the Pontiac man, killing him and wounding a 19-year-old woman who was not identified, according to Auburn Hills police. The Detroit man was taken into custody and was cooperating with authorities but has not been identified by police.

The shooting sent shoppers scurrying for the exits and the mall was closed for the remainder of the day.

Fairlane shopping mall shooting July 3

Police update on fatal shooting at Fairlane Mall in Dearborn

Police update on fatal shooting at Fairlane Mall in Dearborn on Friday afternoon, July 3, 2026.

Early in the afternoon of July 3, several young adults were involved in an altercation at the mall.

Prosecutors determined that Watkins and Seaborn both produced weapons.

Watkins shot Seaborn with the weapon he took from the purse of another person linked to the shooting, Cania Cain, and then continued to “shoot recklessly in the public mall,” officials said. A fourth person, Martinez Long, 19, then shot Watkins, prosecutors allege. Long was arraigned Tuesday in Dearborn’s 19th District Court on one count of carrying a concealed weapon.

Watkins’ death was determined to be a shooting in self defense and no charges were authorized for the homicide

The chaos sent shoppers running for the exits, and one person was struck by a vehicle during the scramble to flee, Police Chief Issa Shahin said.

“Senseless gun violence continues to plague communities across the country,” Shahin said earlier this week. “We are saddened by this entirely preventable tragedy but have to reiterate: We will expend all resources to keep our city safe and hold individuals responsible for dangerous behavior.”

Source link