In a scandal that has rocked the left, a disgraced Democratic lawmaker was indicted by the Department of Justice (DOJ) following allegations that he committed fraud and covered it up, leading to his removal from office and potential jail time.
For context, Rep. Christopher Flanagan (D-MA), who represented the First Barnstable District of Massachusetts, was indicted on Friday, April 11, 2025, by a federal grand jury, which accused him of five counts of wire fraud and one count of falsification of records. These convictions stemmed from Flanagan’s former role as a Home Builders Association (HBA) executive officer in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, which he allegedly defrauded.
According to a DOJ press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, Flanagan used money he stole from the Cape Cod HBA for “mortgage and credit card payments, campaign funding, personal expenditures including psychic services, menswear, [and an] air conditioner.”
In addition, the press release explained that Flanagan was deemed guilty of “an appalling breach of public trust” due to his alleged theft of $36,000 of funds from the HBA via wire transfer — money that he testified was reallocated to “fund his campaign account for State Representative.”
Continuing, the press release detailed how in July 2022, Flanagan “also stole hundreds of dollars via direct debit transactions from the association’s bank account funds to pay for personal psychic services,” continuing, “It is alleged that Flanagan told the HBA Board that he withdrew funds to reimburse himself for HBA-related expenses.”
Elaborating on the extent of Flanagan’s corruption, the DOJ press release continued to recount how Flanagan used phony expense reports to cover up his personal spending. DOJ representatives disclosed that according to the real purchase records, “$613.70 and $361.24 Best Buy purchases were allegedly for an electric dryer and an air conditioner, both delivered to Flanagan’s home; a $1,050.30 Macy’s purchase allegedly for men’s ties, dress shirts, slacks and sports coats; and a $92.86 purchase at Target, allegedly for children’s clothes and toys.”
Adding another layer to the scandal, the press release detailed how Flanagan had been the subject of an investigation by the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance (OCPF), who started looking into his campaign after the appearance of “a campaign mailer that was distributed during Flanagan’s 2022 campaign for State Representative, purportedly a group called ‘Conservatives for Dennis.'” The OCPF revealed that Flanagan had obstructed the investigation by “attributing the source of the mailer to a false persona he created named ‘Jeanne Louise,’ whom Flanagan claimed was a member of an independent conservative group that had endorsed his candidacy.”
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According to the DOJ, Flanagan now faces “up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000” for wire fraud alone. In addition, the DOJ confirmed that falsification of records could get Flanagan even more prison time, writing, “The charge of falsification of records provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.”
Watch coverage of Flanagan’s arrest:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video