A Georgia mayor was charged with burglary and criminal trespassing on Saturday, paving the path for him to be temporarily replaced by one of the five members of the City Council who sued him earlier this year.
Khalid Kamau, the mayor of South Fulton in Atlanta, has been charged with criminal trespassing and first-degree burglary. On the same day, he was freed on $11,000 in surety bonds.
He was also ordered to get a mental health examination, according to NBC station WXIA in Atlanta.
The police department referred a request for further information to the city’s public affairs director, who declined to comment on the matter on Sunday, citing a “ongoing investigation.”
“The City of South Fulton is committed to upholding the law and ensuring that all individuals, regardless of their position, are subject to the same fair and just treatment,”
said Jacqueline Howell, interim director of public relations.
The incident report was requested from the city’s public records office on Sunday.
An email sent to Kamau’s official municipal email account and his head of staff went unanswered on Sunday. Kamau posted on Facebook on Saturday claiming he was “good” and “free.”
“God continues to use me.” “Watch this space,” he wrote.
Kamau also quoted a Bible text regarding “those who are persecuted because of righteousness.”
Natasha Williams-Brown, a member of the City Council and the mayor pro tem, will take over as acting mayor, according to WXIA. She informed the station that the city will continue to operate normally while she takes over as mayor.
“If I am called upon to do any official actions as the acting mayor, I will do so until Mayor Khalid returns to duty,” she stated.
In March, Williams-Brown and four other council members filed a lawsuit to remove Kamau from office. According to court documents, just two council members were not named as defendants in the claim.
According to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, Kamau willfully provided secret material for personal profit since his election and filmed confidential executive sessions.
For almost a year, Kamau has had a fractious relationship with the council. In June 2022, the council requested an inquiry into transactions Kamau made on a city-issued credit card that were uncovered during an audit.
The following month, he requested that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation examine the City Council for alleged corruption, according to WXIA.
