Brian DePeña
Introduction
Brian DePeña is the mayor of Lawrence, Massachusetts, who was arrested at his home by the FBI on August 14, 2026 and charged in federal court with wire fraud and money laundering over an alleged scheme to divert more than $1.5 million in pandemic-era small-business loans to his campaign, his taxes, and the mortgages on his own properties. Two months later the legal perimeter closed in: on October 13, 2026, DePeña was arraigned in state court on 15 additional charges — 14 counts of distributing an illegally recorded communication and one count of witness intimidation — alleging he secretly recorded two city employees, circulated the recording to 14 people, and tried to demote the police captain who investigated. He has pleaded not guilty in both cases and refuses to resign, even as the city council advances a no-confidence vote.
Background Information
DePeña is 61 years old and a citizen of both the United States and the Dominican Republic. Before entering politics he was a small-business owner: according to the federal criminal complaint, he owns and operates Tenares Tire Service Inc., a tire sales and auto service business in Lawrence. His political career began on the Lawrence City Council, where he served from 2016 to 2021, before he was elected mayor in November 2021 and reelected in November 2025. His tenure carried friction, including clashes with the state’s former top public safety official over the city’s acting police chief.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Indicted in two courts, presumption of innocence. DePeña faces 11 federal counts and 15 state counts; all are accusations, he has pleaded not guilty in both cases, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
The federal case arose from Lawrence’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans — the SBA’s CARES Act program for businesses hit by the pandemic. According to the complaint, DePeña caused an EIDL application for Tenares Tire to be submitted around May 4, 2020; the SBA approved $150,000 that June, most of which prosecutors say legitimately went to the business. By early 2021, prosecutors allege, he had a campaign short on cash, back taxes owed to the IRS, and nearly $900,000 owed to private hard-money lenders charging 8% to 12% interest on his Lawrence properties. When later loan increases landed — bringing the total to roughly $1.65 million — the money was quickly diverted, prosecutors say: $85,000 settled his tax debts, checks totaling roughly $90,000 went to “The Committee to Elect Brian Depena,” $42,112.96 went to his mayoral campaign, and $883,293 paid off high-interest mortgages on his properties. “A criminal complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Boston charges DePeña with wire fraud and money laundering. Prosecutors say he fraudulently obtained over $1.5 million in COVID small-business loans and used the proceeds to fund his campaign account, pay personal taxes, and pay off over $880,000 in high-interest mortgages that encumbered various properties he owned in Lawrence.”
The state case, brought by Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell’s office, is separate and stranger: prosecutors say DePeña requested private security cameras for his City Hall office in the fall of 2023, installed by the IT department with audio disabled — and that in March 2026 the cameras picked up audio of a contentious conversation between William Castro, his then-chief of staff, and Francisco Ureña, manager of Lawrence Municipal Airport, who did not know he was being taped. DePeña allegedly circulated the recording to 14 people — radio hosts, political allies, staff, and several city council members — and gave at least one recipient permission to post it on social media. Once authorities began investigating, prosecutors allege, he retaliated against Harold Rogers, the police captain involved, demanding he be moved from supervising the Bureau of Investigations into a lower-paying administrative role. DePeña pleaded not guilty to the 15 counts in Essex Superior Court on October 13, 2026, and was released on personal recognizance. His attorney in the state case, Neil Faigel, told reporters the mayor “is not an IT person,” had no passcodes to the cameras, and could not access them.
At the federal arraignment in August, U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley said DePeña “was looked up to and trusted by his constituents, but he betrayed that trust through his alleged corruption and lies,” and FBI Boston’s Ted Docks called the loans “emergency financial assistance meant to be a safety net for struggling businesses, not Mr. Depena’s own personal ATM.” Federal prosecutors say the SBA would not have approved the loans had it known how the money would be used.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The August arrest landed with FBI agents at DePeña’s home around 6 a.m., and the mayor pleaded not guilty in federal court that afternoon, released on conditions including surrendering his passport and taking on no new loans without court approval. Reaction in Lawrence was mixed: neighbor Elvin Gomez called DePeña “a great neighbor” while acknowledging the “pretty strong accusations,” resident Linda Raymond was blunter — “very crooked” — and City Councilor Marc Laplante called the allegations serious but urged people not to rush to judgment. Asked then if he would resign, DePeña answered “God bless,” and told Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra in Spanish, “I love them, and they know I am an honest and decent man.” His lawyer, Carlos Apostle, said flatly: “No, he’s not. He’s done a great job.”
By October, the political ground had shifted. On the same day DePeña stood in Essex Superior Court on the state charges, the city council — meeting as a special committee — voted to advance a recommendation of no confidence in his ability to lead toward a full council vote. DePeña issued a public letter the previous month refusing to step down: “I was elected to serve the people of this City, and I intend to continue fulfilling the responsibilities entrusted to me and serving the remainder of my term in office,” adding that he respects “the judicial process and the principle that every person is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.”
Current Status
DePeña remains mayor while under indictment in two parallel cases. In the federal case he faces up to 30 years in prison and $500,000 in fines if convicted; in the state case he is due back in Essex Superior Court on December 9, 2026. The no-confidence recommendation awaits a full council vote, his passport remains surrendered, and nothing has been adjudicated in either docket. He continues to insist the accusations are the work of enemies: “Of course. Anyone can be accused. People get accused of anything. My enemies have accused me. What haven’t they made up about me?”
Impact on Their Career/Life
The arrest transformed DePeña’s standing overnight from a freshly reelected incumbent into a federal defendant, and the October state indictment made him a defendant twice over — the rare sitting Massachusetts mayor criminally charged in state and federal court in the same year. Foley’s office signaled public officials would get no leniency, saying it is determined “to root out fraud by anyone, even public officials,” and the council’s no-confidence push means every remaining month of his term now carries a formal, on-the-record challenge to his fitness to govern. Whether he serves out the term — or survives two criminal trials — remains unresolved.
Sources
- NBC10 Boston, “Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña arrested on wire fraud, money laundering charges,” August 14, 2026 — source
- Boston Herald, “Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña arrested by feds on pandemic loan fraud, money laundering charges,” August 14, 2026 — source
- Fox News, “Massachusetts mayor charged with wire fraud in $1.5M COVID relief scheme,” August 2026 — source
- Boston.com, “Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña pleads not guilty to state wiretapping, witness intimidation charges,” October 13, 2026 — source
- Boston 25 News, “Lawrence mayor pleads not guilty to wiretapping, witness intimidation charges,” October 2026 — source