Embattled Baltimore mayor resigns following federal raids
(Reuters) - Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, whose home and offices were raided by federal law enforcement last week amid questions over her financial dealings, abruptly resigned on Thursday, announcing her departure in a statement read by her attorney.
Pugh, a Democrat, apologized in the statement for harming the city’s image.
The statement was read by attorney Steve Silverman at a news conference in Baltimore. Pugh, who has been on medical leave and cloistered at her home since April 1, did not attend the brief news conference.
“I am confident that I have left the city in capable hands for the duration of the term to which I was elected,” Pugh, 69, said in her resignation letter.
Federal authorities executed search warrants at Pugh’s home and offices last week following reports in the Baltimore Sun newspaper that she had been paid $500,000 by the University of Maryland Medical System for her series of children’s books at the same time she served on the system’s board.
Pugh, a former state lawmaker, was elected to a four-year term as mayor in 2016.
Fourteen members of the Baltimore City Council urged Pugh to resign in an April letter.
Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; editing by Jonathan Oatis
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