June 22 (UPI) — Federal agents on Friday searched the home of a Washington, D.C., council member who was previously reprimanded for ethics violations, amid a new investigation into his conduct.
The FBI raided the home after councilor Jack Evans became the subject of a federal grand jury investigation, which is looking into whether he used his position on the council and a transit authority board to benefit clients. The U.S. Attorney’s office said the search warrant was for Evans’ Georgetown-area home.
The raid came a day after a charging memo said Evans used his board position on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to aid a company that paid him $50,000. The memo from the Metro Board Ethics Committee said Evans violated ethics rules when his consulting business worked with a company without disclosing the compensation. Evans resigned from the board, effective June 27.
Investigators found Evans had called on the Metro’s inspector general to open investigations into a competitor of Colonial Parking, while Evans shared internal Metro information with Colonial Parking.
Evans’ private consulting business was investigated by a federal grand jury in March. It was not known if the search Friday included any work he did on city council or with the Metro board.
While on city council, Evans supported bills and projects and encouraged tax breaks for private clients, The Washington Post reported.
Council Chairman Phil Mendelson has launched an internal investigation and plans to remove Evans from his committee chairmanship.
D.C. Republican Party Chairman Jose Cunningham called on Evans to resign from the council.
“We’ve seen this story several times before in the last decade,” Cunningham said. “Here we go again.”
