Pursuant to the Solicitation of Charitable Funds Act, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong and Dept of Consumer Protection Commissioner Bryan Cafferelli on Wednesday announced an investigation into former New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart’s handling of charitable assets for the benefit of the Mayor’s Trophy Charitable Fund, a donor-advised fund managed by the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain.
As part of the investigation, the state has become aware of two relevant accounts – the fund managed by the Foundation, and a checking account also named Mayor’s Trophy Charitable Fund held at M&T Bank and is not managed by the Foundation.
Three requests for information were sent on Wednesday, including a subpoena to Stewart, a letter of inquiry to the Foundation, and a subpoena to M&T Bank.
“It is our job to ensure charitable organizations adhere to all rules and regulations, and it is our priority to give donors confidence that when they give to charity, their contributions are used as intended,” Attorney General Tong and DCP Commissioner Bryan Cafferelli said in a release on Wednesday. “This inquiry will follow the facts wherever they lead, without regard to politics or personalities.”