Connecticut Mayor’s Credit Card Receipts Unveiled, Stirring Community Reaction

Receipts recently discovered have revealed that a former mayor from a Connecticut suburb utilized her city-issued credit card for purchasing personal items like clothing, footwear, and cosmetics.

Erin Stewart, while serving as the mayor of New Britain, a town close to Hartford, reportedly used $207,076 of city funds for personal expenses from 2016 to 2025. This information comes from financial documents obtained by WFSB.

The Republican, who is currently running for governor, is accused of using the city credit card for purchases such as Halloween costumes, children’s vitamins, maternity wear, and cosmetics on Amazon.

Records indicate she frequently shopped at Costco, spending approximately $19,000 at the wholesale store.

There are also allegations that Stewart charged the card with an $18,000 membership fee to the exclusive Hartford Club, in addition to extravagant $500 birthday dinners.

Leading up to her wedding, she purportedly used the city card for transactions at a retailer specializing in printing invitations.

She also reportedly used the card to purchase an $80 gourmet birthday gift basket for Jonathan Perugini, whose LinkedIn indicates that at the time he was serving as the financial director for the city of New Britain.

According to city policy, those with city-issued credit cards are barred from using them to buy ‘personal items.’

An investigation into spending by Stewart’s administration was launched after city employees made complaints to current New Britain Mayor Bobby Sanchez earlier this year, the Hartford Courant reported.

The investigation revealed that she allegedly charged $47,000 worth of Amazon purchases to her city card.

More than $7,000 was spent on Instacart and about $71,000 at other vendors, not including the Costco and Amazon purchases.

Officials allege that more than half of the purchases were not accompanied by receipts, according to the newspaper.

Records also show that only $7,500 worth of purchased merchandise was shipped to the mayor’s office, while about $22,600 worth of items were delivered to her home.

Stewart has denied the accusations against her, telling the newspaper that all of her purchases were for the city’s benefit. 

‘Don’t forget, I was mayor for 12 years,’ she told the Courant. ‘We had countless amounts of weekly events that happened, volunteers to feed, organizations that wanted support. All of these were activities that directly benefited our community.’

She alleged the purchases were used to support raffles, community programing and to celebrate city employees.

Stewart also claimed the mayor’s office budgets for these miscellaneous expenses. 

‘We were known for youth programing and activities. When we did events there were always decorations around and it was always a very welcoming environment. And I was always known for letting the community know that I cared, and I’m proud of that too,’ she added. 

She added that her purchases were not scrutinized during her 12-year stint as mayor and have only become an issue after ‘I decided to step away and run for higher office.’

In a statement to the Daily Mail on Monday, Stewart said: ‘They’re throwing everything they have at me because they know I am the one Republican who can beat Ned Lamont in November. 

‘The timing of these attacks is no coincidence – the moment public polling showed Lamont under 50% the Democrat machine, their allies in New Britain City Hall, and our Republican opponents all went into hyperdrive.’

She noted that all of her mayoral expenditures were ‘budgeted for, submitted, and subject to annual audit’ during the 12 years she served the city.

Stewart also highlighted how she took ‘deep-blue’ New Britain from a ‘$30 million deficit to a $34 million surplus.’

Despite her rebuttal, New Britain residents are seemingly outraged by the purchase receipts, which they allege suggest that Stewart was misusing taxpayer funds.

‘No public servant really has the right to use money for their own personal use other than the needs of the tax payers,’ resident Gloria Williams told WFSB.

Mayor Sanchez, a Democrat, also called her spending an ‘appalling abuse of taxpayer dollars’ and a ‘blatant misuse of public resources for personal and political benefit’.

He argued that his hardworking constituents do not deserve to have ‘their money treated like a personal checking account.’

Ryan Fazio, who is running against Stewart in the Republican primary for Connecticut governor, said she should be disqualified for the race.

‘Erin Stewart’s conduct is disqualifying,’ Fazio wrote in a statement. ‘Using taxpayer funds to pay for tens of thousands of dollars in personal expenses – including her husband’s birthday gifts, her own birthday dinner, a personal membership at a Hartford social club and more – is a serious crime and a profound abuse of the public’s trust.’ 

‘If she were the nominee, Democrats would spend millions making sure every voter in Connecticut knows it, and Republicans would suffer devastating losses up and down the ballot.’

Stewart has now hit out at Fazio for attacking her.

‘Instead of talking about why voters should support him, Ryan Fazio decided to spend Mother’s Day attacking this conservative mother of two with a proven record of fighting for taxpayers,’ she told the Daily Mail.

Stewart added: ‘Republicans need a real warrior to win this election in November…and I am that warrior.’ 

Then-Mayor Erin Stewart announces her run for Connecticut governor at the New Britain City Hall in January 2025

The investigation into Stewart’s spending is being led by Hartford-based Crumbie Law Group. 

An initial report published by the firm last month resulted in an inquiry being launched by the chief state’s attorney’s office and State Police.

The report accused the Stewart administration of backdating city tax bills to allow delinquent taxpayers to avoid high interest charges. 

The Daily Mail has approached Stewart’s campaign for comment.