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Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri
Update: 11:43 p.m. Tuesday: The Hamtramck City Council was supposed to consider reinstating suspended Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri tonight. Instead, it voted unanimously to place the city manager on paid leave.
The city manager was the one who placed the chief on paid leave with pay last week pending an investigation into possible improprieties, something the chief has adamantly denied. Some in the city, including Mayor Amer Ghalib, appeared to be angry that City Manager Max Garbarino had placed the chief on leave before giving him a chance to defend himself.
Ghalib said it was best to remove the city manager so the investigation is fair and impartial.
Several citizens who spoke at the council praised the chief -- the city's first Yemini-American chief. He previously served as a police officer in New York City.
Garbarino argued that he should not be removed simply for doing his job by placing the chief on administrative leave after allegations of possible wrongdoing surfaced. He also stated that he had recused himself from any involvement in the investigation and had turned the matter over to the city attorney.
The FBI confirmed on Friday that agents were in Hamtramck, but declined to elaborate.
Mayor Ghalib told Garbarino he would be welcomed back to his position if the investigation found no wrongdoing on his part — the same applies to the chief, who took the job last year.
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From Earlier Tuesday
The controversy surrounding suspended Hamtramck Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri continues to play out.
The Hamtramck City Council will meet Tuesday at 7 p.m. to decide whether to reinstate him. The city manager placed him on paid leave last week pending an investigation into possible improprieties, Fox 2 reports.
Fox 2 reported last week that the allegations include questions about election fraud and Altaheri’s possible involvement in a potential presidential pardon of a wealthy New York City financier who had been convicted of a financial crime and was a friend of Altaheri.
Altaheri is the city's first Yemeni-American police chief. The city's mayor is also Yemeni-American.
In a statement, Altaheri told CBS News Detroit last week: “I call on the Wayne County Sheriff's Office, State Police, and FBI to follow up on these false accusations and all those behind these fabricated stories.”
On Friday, the Detroit FBI confirmed that agents were in Hamtramck but did not specify why.
FBI Detroit spokesman Jordan Hall told Deadline Detroit and other media outlets on Friday:
“I can confirm that members from the FBI in Michigan were present this morning in the city of Hamtramck conducting law enforcement activities.”
