Overview

• Michigan State Police verified an August 1 surveillance clip showing Councilman Abu Musa sitting in a car as someone deposited multiple stacks of ballots into a Hamtramck drop box.
• Investigators are preparing to forward their report to prosecutors, with possible charges under review for election conduct or residency violations.
• Unofficial results show Musa won the August 5 primary with 1,129 votes, 843 of which were cast by absentee ballot, intensifying scrutiny of the ballots in the footage.
• Michigan law permits returning multiple absentee ballots only for immediate family members or people who cohabit, and it remains unclear whose ballots appear in the authenticated video.
• The current probe builds on a 2023 investigation that led to forgery charges against two other councilmembers and prompted Michigan’s attorney general to recuse herself from the earlier case.