Former Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson was sentenced in federal court to one month in prison and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to public corruption charges. She was also ordered to pay $13,000 in restitution. The sentencing took place before U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani.
Fernandes Anderson, 46, admitted to wire fraud and theft concerning a program receiving federal funds. The charges stemmed from her acceptance of a $7,000 kickback from a staff member’s city-funded bonus, which she received in cash inside a Boston City Hall bathroom.
“Tania Fernandes Anderson was elected to serve her constituents but instead, she deliberately used her elected position as a Boston City Councilor to serve herself,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “From Boston’s City Hall to the Massachusetts State House, to local and state public officials, this office will continue to aggressively root out and expose public corruption. Massachusetts taxpayers deserve an honest government and accountability. As federal prosecutors we have no fear nor favor, and there will be no blind eye or separate justice system for the powerful. The rule of law does not make exceptions for anyone, including someone like Tania Fernandes Anderson.”
Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Division, stated: “Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson let the power she wielded go to her head and routinely put herself over her constituents who trusted her to act on their behalf and for their benefit. Today’s sentence holds her accountable for flagrantly embracing a culture of fraud and deceit and brazenly pocketing taxpayer money inside a City Hall bathroom to feather her nest. Make no mistake, the FBI will continue to investigate and bring to justice unscrupulous public officials. We simply can’t permit such corruption to go unchecked.”
Thomas Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation’s Boston Field Office added: “The sentencing of Tania Fernandes Anderson demonstrates that no one is above the law. Fernandes Anderson used her position as a trusted elected official to steal from the City of Boston and the American taxpayers. IRS-CI is committed to identifying, investigating, and prosecuting all instances of public corruption, both in the Commonwealth and across New England.”
According to court documents, Fernandes Anderson hired two immediate family members as salaried employees on her City Council staff in 2022—an action that violated Massachusetts conflict of interest laws—and was later required by authorities to terminate their employment that August. In May 2023, she was notified by the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission that she would face a $5,000 civil penalty for this violation.
Later in 2022, Fernandes Anderson misrepresented her relationship with another relative when seeking their hiring as a salaried employee by emailing city staff falsely claiming they were not related.
By early 2023, facing personal financial difficulties including an outstanding ethics penalty payment, Fernandes Anderson arranged with Staff Member A—a relative—to provide them with an unusually large bonus if they agreed to return part of it back to her in cash. After instructing city employees via email on May 3rd about processing a $13,000 bonus for Staff Member A (more than double what other staff received), Staff Member A withdrew portions totaling $10,000 over several weeks before handing $7,000 back directly in June at City Hall.
Investigators also found that during 2022-2023 Fernandes Anderson used campaign funds for personal expenses rather than campaign activities; further examination revealed she filed fraudulent tax returns for three consecutive years by omitting various sources of income—including payments from a Massachusetts corporation and misappropriated campaign funds—from federal filings.
Fernandes Anderson represented District 7—which covers Roxbury, Dorchester, Fenway and part of South End—from January 2022 until July 4th this year following her resignation submitted last month after winning re-election in November 2023.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy and Dustin Chao from the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit.
