CRANSTON, R.I. (WPRI) — With just a week remaining until the primary, Republican state representative and Cranston mayoral candidate Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung called for legal action against her opponent, Mayor Ken Hopkins, in what has become a heated race.

At a press conference outside city hall on Tuesday, Fenton-Fung urged the Rhode Island State Police and R.I. Attorney General’s office to investigate Hopkins. She also called for an independent probe by the R.I. Ethics Commission into allegations of “abuse of office.”

On Thursday, a 22-page lawsuit was filed against Hopkins, accusing him of taking ownership of an antique car in 2021 without compensating the owner. The lawsuit also includes claims of “harassment, retaliation, intimidation, and abuse” from city officials involved in the dispute.

“These are damning allegations, many of which Mr. Hopkins almost admitted to on Friday in different reports,” Fenton-Fung said. “You know, when he says, ‘Yes, I have the car. Yes, I took it.'”

In a statement last week, Hopkins argued it wasn’t a coincidence that the owner sued on the eve of his WPRI 12 primary debate against Fenton-Fung, calling it a “political hit job” designed to harm his campaign.

“That complaint could have been filed years ago, but was not,” Hopkins said. “One must ask why Mr. Broccoli never reported the vehicle missing to the police.”

John Marion, executive director of good-government group Common Cause Rhode Island, noted that the lawsuit’s resolution won’t be clear by Election Day.

“Voters won’t sort of know where this goes by the time they cast their ballots,” he said. “Voters are just going to have to weigh, you know, what’s been reported and what’s in the lawsuit and make a decision.”

In response to Fenton-Fung’s press conference, Hopkins issued a new statement accusing her of exploiting the lawsuit for political gain:

“When your mayoral campaign is failing, you call a press conference to try and get attention. When it’s really failing, you call a second one in the following week.”

“My opponent is attempting to exploit for her own political purposes a baseless lawsuit filed by a disgruntled property owner and taxpayer Davide Broccoli. Because I would not play the games of my predecessor and give him favorable tax treatment on his excessively overdue large tax payments, he has instituted a meritless lawsuit as a prop for my opponent’s losing campaign.

“The allegations against the City have been rejected in three different Rhode Island courts. The Cranston Municipal Court, and the Rhode Island District and Superior Courts have dismissed these allegations in the past several years.

“Anyone who knows me, sees through these outlandish claims of taking a car without payment. Mr. Broccoli knows we had reached an agreement on a price and allowed me to take the car for much needed repairs. I have tried over three years to get a bill of sale and pay him the agreed price. If there were a shred of truth to his story, why didn’t Mr. Broccoli report the vehicle missing to the police.

“It’s no surprise my opponent is resorting to these lurid, last-minute accusations. She knows Cranston Republicans are rejecting her support for safe injection sites, reduced in state and free college tuition for illegal immigrants, and the rest of her extremely liberal voting record.

“There is not a shred of evidence to support these claims that will be clear when the case goes to court. Sadly, the legal process that will expose the real facts in this matter will not be concluded until after September 10.

“I am confident the voters see this as a pathetic desperate act by a mean-spirited losing candidate.”

Fenton-Fung and Hopkins will face off in the Sept. 10 primary for the Republican nomination. Early voting is already underway.

The winner will then compete against Democratic City Councilor Robert Ferri in the general election in November.

Ferri also released a statement Tuesday saying these allegations of “highly unethical and potentially illegal conduct” involving the mayor should be investigated.

“I have been hesitant to weigh in on the events and accusations that surrounded the Republican primary, as I think it is important as a Mayoral candidate to stay focused on the issues affecting the people of Cranston. I have found personal attacks in politics make people want to disengage and tune out, and is also often why good people do not want to run for office. Given these reservations, the severity of the charges recently leveled against Mayor Hopkins in a RI Superior Court lawsuit require me to weigh in on both the allegations and the implications for Cranston.

“At the very least if these allegations in the lawsuit are found to have merit, then a more substantial investigation by the proper authorities is warranted. If the allegations of the lawsuit, as well as the unethical misuse of city employees in a personal, potentially-criminal matter proves true, then the Mayor should strongly consider resigning.”

The Cranston Democratic Party also released a statement calling for an investigation.

“The Cranston Democratic Party is dismayed and bewildered by the recent revelations from a lawsuit against Mayor Kenneth Hopkins, alleging that the Mayor of Rhode Island’s second largest city took a car without paying for it from the owner who didn’t want to sell it. In addition to the alleged disqualifying act of taking the vintage sports car, the suit goes on to detail alleged harassment and intimidation of the private citizen who rightfully owned the vehicle. This abuse of power is a blatant violation of the public’s trust and reflects extremely poorly on the integrity of our city’s leadership, if true.

“More troubling still, it appears that the Mayor used City personnel to pressure the owner to surrender his property to Mayor Hopkins. The complaint details how Cranston City Solicitor Christopher Millea was Mayor Hopkins’ hatchet man, attempting to lean on the vehicle’s rightful owner to get the Mayor what he wanted. Outside of simply being wrong and immoral, these allegations, if true, place the Mayor’s official staff in a position of doing private business for an elected public official. This is a gross abuse of ethical boss/subordinate relationships. It also begs the question as to whether Solicitor Millea was privately engaged by Mayor Hopkins to perform these efforts on the side or if he was compensated for his time through his official Cranston city salary and if the work was performed while he was on taxpayer time.

“Cranston deserves leadership that upholds justice and doesn’t pursue private interests over the public good. We call for a full investigation into these disturbing allegations by the Attorney General and the RI State Police. Mayor Hopkins and Solicitor Millea should fully cooperate with all investigations and work to assure the people of Cranston that their public officials are held to the highest ethical standards.”

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