Investigation Says Former Mayor Erin Stewart Misused Over $200,000 in City Funds, Prompts Governor Campaign Suspension

An independent investigation has concluded that former New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart (R) engaged in a pattern of behavior that violated public trust by misusing her city-issued credit card for personal, family, and campaign expenses. In the wake of the report’s findings, Stewart has suspended her campaign for Governor of Connecticut, while current Mayor Bobby Sanchez announced the city is seeking restitution and referring the matter to state and federal prosecutors.

The report, prepared by the Crumbie Law Group, LLC, details that between June 2016 and November 2025, Stewart charged $207,076.07 to her city purchasing card. Of that total, $123,018.25, or 59.41%, lacked any supporting documentation.

In a statement released to address the investigation, Stewart announced her immediate withdrawal from the gubernatorial race.

“Today, I am announcing that I am suspending my campaign for Governor of Connecticut effective immediately,” Stewart stated. “The continued allegations from New Britain City Hall have understandably taken over this race and diverted attention away from the critical mission of saving our state from high taxes, high costs, the most expensive energy in America, and low opportunity for young people.”

Stewart added that she requested copies of the relevant documents and will be reviewing them. “I will take accountability for any mistakes, and I intend to make full and complete restitution to the City of New Britain — my home — for anything that I owe,” she said.

In a press release issued by the Mayor’s office, current Mayor Bobby Sanchez addressed the investigation, stating that the administration is pursuing legal avenues to recover taxpayer funds and has referred the findings to both the Chief State’s Attorney’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office for review.

Calling the findings “outrageous,” the Mayor stated: “According to the report, taxpayer-funded city credit cards were allegedly used for personal purchases, family expenses, political-related activity, private club memberships, clothing, gifts, travel, and other non-government purposes over the course of nearly a decade. The report further concludes that these were not isolated incidents, but a consistent pattern of conduct that investigators say violated City policy and undermined public confidence in government.”

Independent investigation by the Crumbie Law Group says that the city credit card was consistently used to fund routine living expenses that bore no legitimate connection to official city business. To facilitate these purchases, the report says, the city card was entered as the payment source on Stewart’s personal Amazon, Costco, Instacart, and Hartford Club accounts, with many physical items shipped directly to her home address.

Investigators found that the city card was used to purchase household items, groceries, makeup, women’s clothing and undergarments, alcohol, and jewelry – including $15,645.78 at Costco for groceries between 2021 and 2025 alone. The city paid more than $90,000 across Amazon, Costco, and The Hartford Club alone. The report notes that many of these personal expenses were falsely documented in city finance records under categories such as Office Supplies or Supplies.

At The Hartford Club, a private members-only social club, the report says, the city paid $19,260.67 for costs and dues associated with Stewart’s membership. This included a $163.03 charge on the day of a September 2017 cocktail fundraising event for her re-election campaign, contributing to $680.03 in total club charges billed to the city that month. The report says Stewart used the city P-Card for $1,314.76 for two airline tickets to Washington, DC for Stewart and her campaign manager in 2025.

The report says funds were also repeatedly used for family celebrations including expenses for a tropical Peppa Pig-themed birthday party for her daughter, pre-kindergarten graduation items, maternity and early childhood items, and gifts and decorations for her husband’s 40th birthday party. “Ms. Stewart’s extensive purchases through Amazon using her P-Card totaled $47,582.42, and the vast majority of these purchases had no legitimate connection to city business,” the report said, “likewise, many of Ms. Stewart’s fraudulent purchases were falsely documented in city finance records as “Office Supplies” or “Supplies'”.

The report added that, “The evidence also indicates that Ms. Stewart’s P-Card was utilized to purchase expensive meals on her own birthday. Ms. Stewart was born on March 4, 1987; and Ms. Stewart’s P-Card was charged $361.09 at Denovellis Italian restaurant on March 4, 2022, and it was charged $531.62 at Capital Grill on March 4, 2023.”

The report says that, “Ms. Stewart charged thousands of dollars to her city-issued credit card for purchases of clothes and jewelry, and the evidence suggests these items were purchased for her personal use or use by her husband or children.”

The report connected audiovisual equipment purchased with city funds to the creation of videos supporting her gubernatorial campaign. A Dynamic Microphone and a DJI Mic 2 purchased with city funds appear identical to equipment used by Stewart in her recent campaign videos, the report says, including videos posted long after her time as Mayor had ended. The report notes that after Stewart left office in November 2025, the Dynamic Microphone could not be located during a thorough search of the Mayor’s office.

The investigation addressed the role of the city’s annual audits. The report clarified that municipal audits are macro-level reviews not intended as a continuous compliance program for day-to-day credit card charges, as Stewart has recently intimated. However, a December 2019 letter from the city’s auditors, BlumShapiro, did warn the administration of vulnerabilities after finding that six out of twenty-five sampled transactions lacked proper documentation, and recommended strengthened internal controls. Despite the auditor’s identified deficiencies and recommendations, the report states that no steps were taken to investigate the cited issues or to implement corrective measures to mitigate ongoing losses to the city.

This excessive spending consistently drove the Mayor’s Office budget line items for miscellaneous office supplies and administrative expenses over budget for the majority of her tenure – in total, between fiscal years 2015 and 2025 by nearly 30%.

The Crumbie Law Group concluded that the expenditures benefited and enriched Stewart and her family, showing a reckless disregard for established policies governing the use of public funds. The firm warned that the apparent diversion of public funds may expose individuals to significant civil and criminal liability, including Fraud, Larceny, Embezzlement, False Statements, Wire Fraud, and Misuse of Government Property. The report states the conduct warrants a full criminal investigation by the appropriate state and federal authorities.