City Official Makes Court Appearance On Extortion Charges

A second Boston city official was indicted on extortion charges Wednesday. U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz's office is charging Timothy Sullivan — the city's acting director of intergovernmental relations — with conspiracy and extortion. The indictment alleges that Sullivan colluded with Kenneth Brissette, the city's tourism director, to withhold permits from a Boston music festival until it hired union labor.

Brissett was arrested last month. Wednesday's indictment adds another count to his case, all of which amounts to more bad news for Boston Mayor Marty Walsh.

"If these allegations are true, simply really disheartening and it concerns me," said the mayor at a coffee hour for residents of the North End. "I love being the mayor of the city of Boston, I hold everyone to a high standard of integrity. And, we've brought in outside counsel to look at and see these allegations and what's going on."

Bruce Gellerman, WBUR reporter. He tweets @AudioBruce.

Thomas Farragher, columnist and associate editor for The Boston Globe. He tweets @FarragherTom.