Wu cabinet official Segun Idowu linked to City Hall sex scandle and lawsuit resigns
Top Wu official at center of City Hall scandal resigns as fallout continues
Segun Idowu, a senior official in Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration who was investigated amid a City Hall personnel scandal, is stepping down from his role as Boston’s chief of economic opportunity and inclusion.
The mayor’s office confirmed Monday that Idowu will resign effective Feb. 27. His exit comes after months of scrutiny tied to allegations involving a workplace relationship and a domestic dispute that led to the firing of two city employees.
Wu praised Idowu in a prepared statement, crediting him with expanding economic programs across Boston neighborhoods and helping the city recover from the pandemic. She cited efforts to fill vacant storefronts, increase supplier diversity in city contracts, and support entrepreneurship downtown and in surrounding communities.
Idowu’s departure follows a lawsuit filed last September by Marwa Khudaynazar, the former chief of staff for Boston’s Office of Police Accountability and Transparency. Khudaynazar alleges the city unfairly fired her to protect Idowu and shield the mayor from political damage during an election year.
According to the complaint, Idowu allegedly propositioned Khudaynazar, who was dating Chulan Huang at the time. Huang worked under Idowu as a neighborhood business manager. The situation escalated into a domestic dispute last May, leading to the arrests of both Khudaynazar and Huang and their termination by the city days later.
Idowu has denied any wrongdoing through his attorney, Jeffrey Robbins. He has pointed to a city-commissioned investigation that concluded he did not violate workforce policies.
Mayor Wu has said Khudaynazar and Huang were fired for invoking their official status as city employees in an attempt to avoid arrest during a police response.
The mayor’s office declined to provide a reason for Idowu’s resignation and did not make him available for comment. Idowu told the Boston Globe he was leaving to spend more time caring for his grandmother.
His exit adds to a growing list of senior departures from Wu’s administration since her reelection. Former chief of streets Jascha Franklin-Hodge left at the end of last year after overseeing the city’s controversial bus and bike lane expansions. Wu’s former chief of staff, Tiffany Chu, stepped down last November.
City Hall has not said whether Idowu’s resignation is connected to the ongoing lawsuit, which remains unresolved.
