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- New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is in hot water over his alleged misuse of his security detail.
- He owes nearly $320,000 in taxpayer money from using NYC security for his presidential campaign.
- The City Department of Investigation found a "misuse of NYPD resources for a personal benefit."
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is once again under scrutiny for his use of public resources, this time in a new 47-page report from the City Department of Investigation.
The stern report found de Blasio owes nearly $320,000 in taxpayer funds from his security detail accompanying him to Iowa and South Carolina during his failed 2020 presidential bid. That figure does not include officer salaries or overtime, and neither the mayor nor his presidential campaign have paid the city back yet, according to the report.
Investigators also cited de Blasio using a police van and cops to help his daughter move, which the authors of the report described as misuse of NYPD resources for a personal benefit."
In a statement to The New York Times, who first reported on the investigation, the mayor's office lambasted the findings.
"This unprofessional report purports to do the N.Y.P.D.'s job for them, but with none of the relevant expertise – and without even interviewing the official who heads intelligence for the City," de Blasio's spokesperson said in a statement. "As a result, we are left with an inaccurate report, based on illegitimate assumptions and a naïve view of the complex security challenges facing elected officials today."
The mayor's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for additional comment.
To prevent a similar problem from happening in the future, the report recommended using the Conflicts of Interest Board to publicly issue advice to elected officials about how they use city resources when campaigning or doing other political activities.
In the past, the mayor has been criticized by political opponents and mocked by the general public for his use of a city motorcade to transport him from Gracie Mansion all the way down to Brooklyn to use the Park Slope YMCA, - a 12.5 mile drive in Big Apple traffic - and they've been caught speeding.
A day before the report was released, The New York Times reported that de Blasio "has begun to tell people privately that he plans to run for governor of New York next year, according to three people with direct knowledge of his conversations with fellow Democrats and donors."
He will be in need of a new job after his mayoral term expires on Dec. 31, and a primary challenge to Gov. Kathy Hochul could be his next move now that his nemesis Andrew Cuomo has left Albany in disgrace.
The mayor has not outright denied his interest in running for governor, and recently said he wants to stay engaged in public life.
"So, I want to serve," he said in a Sept. 29 briefing. "I'm going to figure out the right way to serve and the right time to serve."