MELVINDALE, Mich. (WXYZ) — Melvindale officials contacted the FBI and Michigan State police in January after being presented with evidence that a recording device had been placed in the mayor's office.
Nicole Shkira assumed office on December 6, 2023, after serving two four-year terms on the city council.
In January, as she prepared to come to work, Shkira said she received a call from police chief Dan Jones.
“He told me over the phone that we received some mail,” she said, “and it was kind of odd.”
Shkira was told that she, along with chief Jones, the city council and the mayor’s secretary had all received envelopes in the mail. None had a return address.
When the police chief opened his, Shkira said, he found a lone thumb drive that contained recorded conversations that had taken place inside the mayor’s office from the last two months.
Shkira said she immediately recognized her voice.
“The lieutenant, the chief and then my secretary were in the chief’s office listening to the flash drive. And I was in shock,” she said, adding that the thumb drive contained about 60 recordings.
She said she didn't listen for long before deciding that officials needed to share the recordings with Michigan State Police.
From what she heard, the mayor says the recordings seemed unremarkable: day-to-day office conversations between her, her secretary and members of the police department.
She does not know who recorded them or why.
“Whoever did this, you think they were trying to scare you?” asked Channel 7’s Ross Jones.
“I think so," she said, adding later: “They want to let me know that they’re listening, that they know whatever they think they know.”
Shkira said she believes whoever is responsible for the recordings works for the city.
Matthew Schneider, the former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, said that if a person who wasn’t part of any of these conversations somehow recorded them, they could face prosecution.
“If a person participates in an eavesdropping under Michigan law, that’s a two-year felony,” Schneider said.
On the same day the recordings were received, Shkira said Michigan State Police searched her office for listening devices, but didn’t find any.
An MSP spokesman confirms that the agency was contacted by Melvindale officials, but said there is no ongoing investigation.
An FBI spokesperson said the agency does not confirm nor deny whether investigations are ongoing.
Today, Mayor Shkira says she’s still coming into city hall every day, but taking precautions.
She has held sensitive meetings in the basement or in someone’s car, she says, rather than her office.
“I just hope that in all of this, in the end justice is served and we can go back to everyday life. And not have to go in other rooms, go outside. This shouldn’t be like this."
Contact 7 Investigator Ross Jones at ross.jones@wxyz.com or at (248) 827-9466.