A week before one of the most incendiary mayoral primaries in Cranston’s history, State Rep. Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung held a press conference at City Hall to talk about explosive allegations made against her opponent.

Fenton-Fung called for Attorney General Peter Neronha’s office and the Rhode Island State Police to formally investigate claims that Mayor Ken Hopkins, her primary opponent, stole a sports car.

A lawsuit filed last Thursday accused Hopkins of stealing a vintage 1975 MG sports car belonging to Davide Broccoli and engaging in “a campaign of harassment, retaliation, intimidation, and abuse” against him.

Robert D. Murray, an advisor for Hopkins’ campaign, called the allegations “absurd,”  calling the suit a “political hit piece.” He said Hopkins had tried paying for the vehicle for over three years and Broccoli had not accepted his payment.

That explanation, however, was not one that Fenton-Fung was willing to accept.

“If what is alleged in this lawsuit is true, he likely used his office in multiple ways to violate the state’s ethics laws,” Fenton-Fung said. “Mayor Hopkins’ statements to the press, especially in the Jim Hummel expose, that his legal position was that Mr. Broccoli gave him the keys, he thus sold him the car, were mind-blowing.”

The representative also called on the City Council to start their own investigation and pass a resolution calling for the AG and RISP to investigate as well.

Fenton-Fung’s husband, former mayor Allan Fung, passed around papers highlighting the potential ethical, motor vehicle and criminal offenses Hopkins would face if the allegations were true. Fenton-Fung also said that she believed that Hopkins may not have been honest about how much he said he agreed to pay Broccoli.

“The idea that Ken Hopkins in the past few days put out ‘oh, I was going to give him $1,200’- that was a number he chose after a few different interviews- I think he chose that number because anything over $1,500 would put this into a felony phase,” Fenton-Fung said. “If you take a look at what these cars are detailing for, this is a $1,500 to $2,300 value. This was not a small gift.”

Over the past weekend, Fenton-Fung said she had people asking her about the case at the Santa Maria di Prata feast and while knocking doors, and apologies from Cranston police officers about Cranston Police Union Local 301 endorsing Hopkins’ reelection bid.

“What’s become clear in our city over the weekend is that Cranstonians, even some of his now formerly most ardent supporters, have lost complete faith in Mayor Hopkins,” Fenton-Fung said.

When asked about whether Broccoli filed the lawsuit less than two weeks before the election to help Fenton-Fung’s campaign, something that Hopkins’ camp had claimed, Fenton-Fung said that she had never met Broccoli.

“He could walk by me right now, and I wouldn’t even know it,” Fenton-Fung said. “Ken Hopkins wakes up in the morning- if he has two sugars in his coffee instead of three, I get blamed for it at this point… This has nothing to do with me. This has to do with his behavior, timing or not.”

The winner of Sept. 10’s primary will face Democratic candidate Robert Ferri, who switched parties in 2021. That switch, which flipped control of the City Council as well, has become another topic of contention in the GOP primary, with Fenton-Fung blaming Hopkins for some of the events leading up to it.

Ferri also weighed in, agreeing in a press release with Fenton-Fung that the allegations against Hopkins needed to be investigated.

“If these allegations in the lawsuit are found to have merit, then a more substantial investigation by the proper authorities is warranted,” Ferri stated. “If the allegations of the lawsuit, as well as the unethical misuse of city employees in a personal, potentially-criminal matter proves true, then the Mayor should strongly consider resigning.”

The Cranston Democratic Party said in a statement that they were “dismayed and bewildered” by the allegations against Hopkins, and also called for an investigation into Cranston City Solicitor Christopher Millea for his alleged role in pressuring Broccoli.

Murray released a lengthy statement Friday on behalf of Hopkins:

"While I have only reviewed the Broccoli lawsuit preliminarily, its filing by Davide Broccoli yesterday is nothing more than a political hit job designed to try and impact my re-election effort and the September 10th mayoral primary."

"That complaint could have been filed years ago but was not. One must ask why Mr. Broccoli never reported the vehicle missing to the police ... I have been trying to pay Mr. Broccoli for the vehicle since 2021 and obtain a bill of sale to register it. He has refused because I would not show him special treatment on the payment of delinquent taxes. It is a public record that his various properties have been sold at several Cranston tax sales."

"The enforcement actions by the Cranston Police Department and Building Inspection Department were undertaken to clean up junk vehicles and material he has accumulated over many years and left in deplorable condition. His continuing violation of city ordinances had to be addressed. Those efforts were initiated in the normal course of city operations and not at my insistence."

"These same allegations have been raised by Mr. Broccoli and his attorney in the Cranston Municipal Court, and the District and Superior Courts of Rhode Island. They have been rejected at every level."

"The voters of Cranston will see this for what it is. Sadly, it is a last-minute ambush attempt in a political season that has been filled with many false claims and misrepresentations."

"I will be meeting with legal counsel to handle this matter through the court system."