Hamtramck appoints new mayor pro tem despite ongoing probe
Hamtramck city councilmember under scrutiny named new mayor pro tem
A Hamtramck city councilmember who has recently fallen under scrutiny for allegedly not living in the city will serve as the next mayor pro tem after a council vote Tuesday night.
HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (FOX 2) - The Hamtramck City Council voted Tuesday to appoint a new mayor pro tem, selecting a councilmember who is currently under investigation.
City councilmember Abu Musa was voted to serve as the mayor pro tem, despite scrutiny over whether he should be allowed to serve on the council. Musa and another councilmember, Muhith Mahmood, are accused of living outside of Hamtramck. He has denied this claim, and is currently running for re-election.
2 Hamtramck council members investigated for not being residents
They were allegedly found to live in Warren and Troy, respectively. Both denied the results.
Dig deeper:
The appointing of a new mayor pro tem is just the latest shakeup in the Wayne County city. The previous mayor pro tem stepped down as an investigation into city official misconduct continues.
Last month, the council voted to terminate Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri and city manager Max Garbarino.
City of Hamtramck votes to fire police chief Jamiel Altaheri, city manager Max Garbarino
The Hamtramck City Council voted to terminate two city officials on Tuesday amid a 59-page bombshell report, which centers around misconduct allegations.
This comes after a 59-page document, compiled by Miller Johnson Attorneys, that detailed alarming claims centered around Altaheri, Garbarino, and police officer David Adamczyk.
The investigation found that Altaheri allegedly destroyed evidence by wiping his city phone, drove his city vehicle while intoxicated, misused his police lights to run red lights, and at one point even handed a loaded gun to a civilian volunteer, allegedly instructing the volunteer to point it at someone’s head.
Investigators further alleged that Adamczyk tried to rig a sergeant’s exam, abused overtime hours, lied about secretly recording colleagues, and joined Chief Altaheri in an "improper stolen car recovery."
Additionally, the report claimed Garbarino showed poor judgment in pushing to re-hire Officer Adamczyk and allegedly attended a council meeting armed with a concealed weapon after being suspended.
The investigation concluded that there is enough evidence to discipline all three men, up to and including termination.
The Source: Previous FOX 2 reporting and Hamtramck City Council meetings were used to report this story.