Anchorage Municipal Ombudsman Darrel Hess spoke out Thursday, one day after issuing a memo that a municipal “executive” said Mayor Dave Bronson’s office was viewing surveillance footage of the ombudsman’s office.
Later in the day, Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson’s office issued a statement that his deputy chief of staff, Brice Wilbanks, is no longer working with the city. Hess won’t confirm whether Wilbanks was the source of the allegations.
“I suspect, if this occurred, it was an employee who was trying to assist the administration and didn’t think of it as intimidation,” said Hess. “I looked at it, the administration looked at it, and we both came to the conclusion that videos were most likely not pulled, but just making that statement, you know, is intimidation and I think it’s just as egregious as actually pulling the videos.”
“Mr. Wilbanks is no longer employed,” the statement said. “Mayor Bronson takes these allegations very seriously and does not condone what has been alleged. Which is why in order to avoid any potential conflict it has been referred to the Alaska Department of Law. The Mayor remains committed to working on behalf of the nearly 300,000 people of Anchorage.”
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