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Detroit Inspector General reports surge in complaints, cites OCFO and DDOT investigations
Summary
Inspector General Kamal Mirabel told the Internal Operations Standing Committee that complaints rose sharply in 2025 and highlighted investigations that found misuse of city time by an OCFO employee and fraternization and inconsistent discipline at DDOT; the committee received the report and agreed to follow up.
Inspector General Kamal Mirabel presented the Office of Inspector General's fourth-quarter and year-end report to the City of Detroit's Internal Operations Standing Committee on Feb. 18, saying the office closed and referred multiple investigations and saw a large increase in public complaints in 2025.
"We closed out the year with over 440 new complaints," Mirabel said, adding that the office's increased community outreach and social-media engagement accounted for much of the rise. Manager of Investigations and Audit Beverly Murray told the committee the OIG logged 453 active complaints for 2025, of which 319 were closed with formal or informal referrals, 92 were closed with no action, 16 remained pending at year end and 26 resulted in new investigations.
The presentation included summaries of three investigations. In one case (file 208), the OIG found that an OCFO employee arranged and conducted meetings related to outside employment with Wayne County during city work hours and remained clocked in for those duties. "Based on the evidence review, the OIG found that the employee abused their position," Mirabel said, and the office recommended discipline and an updated outside-employment form. Mirabel said OCFO had not provided a substantive response as of Dec. 15, 2025.
Another investigation (20513) examined alleged undisclosed romantic relationships among Detroit Department of Transportation employees. The OIG found evidence that a supervisor and employee engaged in an undisclosed relationship that contributed to service disruptions. The OIG recommended discipline in line with DDOT's handbook and broader systemic changes; DDOT acknowledged the initial discipline was not proper, said it redistributed fraternization policies, and reported steps to improve investigative procedures and oversight.
Mirabel also highlighted process issues across departments, including budget-flag escalation gaps between OCFO and other departments and absent disclosure forms in HR for employees to report personal relationships as required by Executive Order 2012-1. "We recommended that HR and the Law Department provide a disclosure form and that departments consistently enforce it," Murray said; the OIG reported HR later partnered with Law to update a disclosure form and said some departments planned to implement the recommendations.
Council members pressed Mirabel on nonresponsive department directors. "When you take the time to do these in-depth reports and investigations and you make recommendations, the recommendations should at least be responded to," Chair Angela Whitfield Calloway said. Mirabel said the OIG will continue follow-up and highlighted the office's goal of passing a peer review scheduled for later in 2026.
After the presentation and questions, the committee moved to receive and file the OIG report; the motion passed with no objections. Mirabel said the office will return with its first-quarter 2026 report.
The committee did not take formal disciplinary action during the meeting; the OIG record shows the office recommended discipline and procedural changes but left action to department leadership and contract processes.
