"America's Worst Mayor" Tiffany Henyard Disappears After Investigation Reveals Millions In Debt, $40,000 In Amazon Purchases
Dolton Mayor Tiffany Aiesha Henyard, who has been dubbed "America's Worst Mayor", has disappeared after an investigation into the village's spending revealed more than $3.5 million in debt, "out of control" credit card spending and $40,000 spend on Amazon purchases in one day.
Believe it or not, former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot was hired to lead the investigation into the Dolton, Il mayor.
Village trustees hired Lightfoot to address concerns about excessive spending, including taxpayer-funded billboards, ads, lavish dinners, and trips, according to CBS. Earlier this year it was reported Henyard spent $7,650 on hair and makeupafter taking office and billed the city for it.
Police ally of ‘Dolton Dictator’ Tiffany Henyard indicted — as lawyer claims case brought to help take down mayor
A top Illinois village police official and close ally of “Dolton Dictator” Mayor Tiffany Henyard was indicted on federal charges Monday — though his lawyer argued the new criminal case was only brought in hopes his client will rat out the embattled municipal leader.
Dolton Mayor Tiffany Aiesha Henyard, who has been dubbed "America's Worst Mayor", has disappeared after an investigation into the village's spending revealed more than $3.5 million in debt, "out of control" credit card spending and $40,000 spend on Amazon purchases in one day.
Believe it or not, former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot was hired to lead the investigation into the Dolton, Il mayor.
Village trustees hired Lightfoot to address concerns about excessive spending, including taxpayer-funded billboards, ads, lavish dinners, and trips, according to CBS. Earlier this year it was reported Henyard spent $7,650 on hair and makeupafter taking office and billed the city for it.
Police ally of ‘Dolton Dictator’ Tiffany Henyard indicted — as lawyer claims case brought to help take down mayor
A top Illinois village police official and close ally of “Dolton Dictator” Mayor Tiffany Henyard was indicted on federal charges Monday — though his lawyer argued the new criminal case was only brought in hopes his client will rat out the embattled municipal leader.
Dolton Deputy Police Chief Lewis Lacey was hit with a nine-count indictment for bankruptcy fraud and other charges after he was accused of scheming to hide assets and income to trick creditors and avoid paying a settlement tied to a past lawsuit, the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced.
He also falsely claimed he was separated from his spouse and she didn’t contribute to the amount of money brought into the home each month, which allowed him to lowball his monthly income so he didn’t need to pay creditors as much, the feds alleged.
Lacey is a well-known supporter of Henyard, who took office in 2021 and has been the focus of endless controversy over the past year.
Trustees fighting back against Henyard placed Lacey on administrative leave last week, though a lawyer representing the board, Burt Odelson, told the Chicago Tribune he still kept reporting to work.
The mayor, the village and the nearby township where Henyard is also supervisor were issued subpoenas earlier this year for a trove of documents and financial records as part of a federal probe.
Henyard, who has been called a dictator by some locals, has faced accusations of misusing taxpayer funds and using the police department for personal business.
While Lacey’s criminal case on Monday is not connected to village business, his attorney claimed his close connection to Henyard is the reason he was indicted. The acting police chief has been accused of going after the mayor’s detractors.
Lawyer Gal Pissetzky told The Post the US attorney’s actions are part of a “bigger plan by the government to try to indict the mayor of Dolton” and his client was innocent of the charges.
The feds only want to use Lacey to help build up a criminal case against Henyard, he claimed.
“They’re going after certain people in the village to see who’s gonna turn on the mayor,” Pissetzky insisted.
Lacey was charged as part of the ongoing federal probe, the US Attorney’s Office said. He could spend decades in prison if convicted on all charges.
Lacey, who acted as a bodyguard for Henyard during an event in February and even blocked a Post photographer from snapping photos of the Dolton leader, is also facing charges of making false statements and declarations in a bankruptcy case and perjury.
Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who was hired to probe the village’s spending, revealed last weekthat police costs jumped 21% since the village fiscal year 2022, with police overtime jumping hundreds of thousands of dollars during that span.
Lacey received more than $200,000 in overtime since the village’s fiscal year 2022 even though he hasn’t been part of the village’s collective bargaining agreement for some time, Lightfoot said as she unveiled the high spending in Dolton, to the gasps of residents.
A longtime aide to Henyard, Keith Freeman, was slapped with similar charges earlier this year to which he’s pleaded not guilty.
While Henyard said at a meeting last week that Freeman was fired as village administrator, the trustees said she lacked authority to make that decision and didn’t support the termination, according to the Tribune.
Additional reporting by Steven Vag
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