On Monday morning, FBI agents raided the home of Democrat Mayor Frank Gilliam of Atlantic City, who only three weeks ago was reportedly in a fight outside a nightclub.
According to NJ.com, Doreen Holder, a public affairs specialist with the FBI’s Newark office, stated, “We can confirm that our agents were executing search warrant at the home of Mayor Frank Gilliam.” One source told NJ.com that about a dozen agents entered Gilliam’s home.
The alleged fight three weeks ago precipitated municipal criminal summons. In two of the summons, accusers of Gilliam said he allegedly swung at two people, but did not hit anyone; those summons also stated that Gilliam reportedly “kept trying to attack” one of the witnesses. Another witness said Gilliam chased the person around in a car. Atlantic City Councilman Jeffree Fauntleroy II was also reportedly involved; he allegedly repeatedly punched a person in the face, hurled the person to the floor, and chased him. Another charge against him: threatening a woman, allegedly saying he would “f*** you up.”
The investigation moved from the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office to the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office to avoid a conflict of interest.
In June 2017, an Atlantic City woman said that when she dated Gilliam in 1997, she sought a restraining order against him. Mia Williams, 50, said she brought up the alleged behavior because Gilliam ran ads attacking his opponent Council President Marty Small, outlining brushes with the law Small had with the law in 1993 and 2005. Gilliam denied Williams’ claims, asserting, “I don’t know what she’s talking about. It’s ironic that this young lady who is on Marty Small’s team would utilize this to defame my name. It doesn’t mean that it happened. Anyone can say that.”
The Press of Atlantic City reported, “Williams was approved for a restraining order March 15, 1997, against Gilliam in Atlantic County Superior Court under the New Jersey Prevention of Domestic Violence Act. The document stated the court found ‘good cause to believe that (Williams’) life, health, and well-being have been and are endangered by (Gilliam’s) acts of violence.’”
Gilliam had referred to drug-distribution charges in 1993 and an arson charge in 2005 against Small; both of those charges had been dropped and no conviction had occurred. After Williams’ remarks, Small urged Gilliam to drop out of the race for mayor, asserting, “The people of Atlantic City deserve better. Any man that puts his hand on a woman is a coward. There is no place for domestic violence.”
Gilliam replied, “We are ready to put Atlantic City first again. Whatever accusations people have, we’ll let the voters decide. May the better man win.”
In 2010, the Press of Atlantic City reported another incident: “At-large Councilman Frank Gilliam allegedly assaulted a man on Atlantic Avenue Wednesday night, according to a police spokeswoman. Sgt. Monica McMenamin confirmed today that Gilliam and Martin Jones, 40, of Atlantic City, filed simple assault complaints against each other Wednesday night after an altercation. Police issued summonses against each man, she said.”