FBI investigating evidence against Harrisburg Mayor in real estate, abuse of power scandal: Federal Lawsuit

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Harrisburg, PA – It has been alleged that city officials, including Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse, were engaged in an abuse of power scandal involving a real estate scheme for personal enrichment, according the the details of a federal lawsuit. An FBI investigation related to the corruption scandal of Harrisburg officials has hamstrung the efforts of the city’s legal team to have the case dismissed.

A timeline of events outlined in the lawsuit mentions Chief County Detective Mr. John Goshert and the larger case involving corruption of officials in the City of Harrisburg. Due to a conflict of interest between county and city officials, federal oversight was requested in the matter.

During a meeting with an F.B.I. agent in Harrisburg, the city resident at the center of the scandal submitted evidence of public official corruption. The resident has been targeted by the city administration as a whistleblower.

The case filed by the city resident is now being heard by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. The lawsuit implicates city and county officials named in the real estate scheme that involved illegal judicial sales of properties.

The plaintiff has alleged that Mayor Papenfuse used Rebirth, LLC, as a dummy corporation with no true purpose other than to move real estate from government ledgers for personal gain, while simultaneously using funds from the city, at his direction as Mayor, to demolish [condemned] structures in an effort to relieve personal financial burden.

According to legal documents, an employee of Mayor Papenfuse’s bookstore was connected to Rebirth, LLC, the illegal straw buyer of parcels on Rudy Road in Central Allison Hill.

The plaintiff contends that this is an insider trading scheme, and works in conjunction with the efforts of the city to push him out of the city, and then take over his building, which is a highly sought after location by the city.

The location of the plaintiff’s property at 333 S. 18th Street, adjacent to the Rudy Road properties, is strategically important for Capital Region Water’s storm water and sewage system upgrades.

Likewise, this set of properties is a key location needed for the Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority’s plans being developed through the recent brownfield study, where 37 parcels were targeted for uses that coincide with plans similar to those within the comprehensive plan.

Those plans could only be implemented after a massive zoning change, which eliminated every industrial use, for every industrial building – which then lead to the coordinated effort with the codes office to target owners, and drive them out of their property.

The Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority planned to use CREDC as a conduit buyer.

The Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority then took plans submitted by the plaintiff, which were denied by the city codes office, and openly claimed the same plans – (idea by idea, square foot by square foot) as they pursued a separate building with another investor.

The plaintiff believes that the scheme was executed under the guise of being in the public’s best interest as a “plan developed by the people,” and for that purpose it was intentionally worked into the city’s failed comprehensive plan, under the section called Meander Park in the proposal.

The effect of rezoning in Harrisburg created land use restrictions, increased taxes, and other financial burdens on property owners. This was allegedly done in Allison Hill to devalue real estate, and funnel private property through HRA and CREDC.

The plantiff had his life threatened by Karl Singleton, former senior advisor to Mayor Papenfuse for politically motivated reasons. Magisterial District Judge David O’Leary ruled against the senior advisor in the case, thus resulting in Singleton being removed from Papenfuse’s administration.

Harrisburg Mayor used codes enforcement officers to target to residents

The mayor allegedly used public departments to target private property owners and city residents that were perceived to be whistleblowers. The plaintiff has submitted documented evidence as proof that he was repeatedly targeted and excessively fined by city codes enforcement officers, as directed by the mayor.

Under oath, Former Codes Official Arden Emerick testified to Magisterial District Justice Margeram that he was specifically directed by the mayor to cite the plaintiff of the federal lawsuit.

The Bureau of Codes administrator also illegally held up building permits against the plaintiff, effectively targeting his livelihood. These tactics are being used to force private property owners out of Allison Hill, as the lawsuit alleges.

Growing U.S. Trend: Local governments using fines and outright forfeitures to take control of property and pad their budgets

• The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution prohibits these excessive fines

The City of Harrisburg has a history of using the Codes Enforcement office as a weapon. It was widely reported in 2014 when the city had a pastor jailed over a church building, a case in which all charges were later dropped.

Pastor Sullivan believes he was actually being targeted by the city for political reasons other than the church. At 48 years-old, the pastor found himself in the hospital as a result of undue stress from the matter.

Also in 2014, early in the first term of Mayor Papenfuse, the City of Harrisburg illegally removed jurisdiction of housing codes violations from the local magistrates, and sent all code violations 45 minutes away to a courtroom in Elizabethville.

Now described as an abuse of power, the court, which Mayor Eric Papenfuse pushed for, enabled the city to push its development agenda on property owners in a struggling city.

A key driver behind the Harrisburg housing court, which was very quietly shut down in 2019 was Bureau of Codes Administrator David Patton. The Housing Court funneled cases for codes outside of Harrisburg City Magisterial District Courts, therefore violating the rights of private property owners in Harrisburg.

The federal lawsuit is being heard by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.