Michael Lara, executive director of the Newton Housing Authority, agreed to quit his Newton job as part of a deal with federal prosecutors after he was caught illegally using funds from his previous role in Watertown to renovate his house.
If Lara leaves his Newton role, pays back the $6,427 to Watertown, and does not commit any new crimes before Feb. 17, 2027, he will not be formally charged, contingent on judicial approval.
Lara served as the executive director of the Watertown Housing Authority (WHA) from July 2019 to January 2025. In 2023, he began to renovate the bathroom at his Norwood home and used his WHA credit card to purchase items such as sinks at Home Depot. He labeled some of the purchases as ‘705,’ referring to a specific kind of Watertown Housing Authority rental, to conceal that the purchase was actually for his personal use. Lara purchased other high-end items at Moniques Bath Showroom, such as a $443 shower head, using WHA money but with Lara’s name and address listed on the billing documents.
The Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General (OIG) began investigating Lara in 2024. Lara, in his capacity as WHA director, sent the OIG documents listing the WHA credit card policy and a list of employees with credit card access. Lara removed some of the bathroom fixtures from his home at this point. In June 2026, investigators from the FBI searched Lara’s home and saw some of the lighting items he had purchased with WHA funds, as well as a ladder and sander he had also purchased.
The deferred prosecution agreement was filed by the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the District of Massachusetts on August 27. It states that Lara “acknowledges that the USAO has independently developed evidence during its investigation sufficient to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that LARA violated federal law as described in the attached Statement of Facts and the Information, and he accepts responsibility for this conduct.”
The crime he was charged with was wire fraud, because the nature of a credit card transaction leads to a “an interstate wire communication in connection with the authorization and processing of the transaction.” If he does not leave his Newton role, or does not pay back what he owes, or commits an additional crime before February, he could face prosecution. It will be up to the USAO to decide if he has fulfilled his part of the agreement.
Lara has been the executive director of the Newton Housing Authority since early 2025. Before working for Watertown he worked at Metro Housing Boston, a nonprofit housing organization, and he also holds a law degree from Suffolk University.