Baltimore Mayor Pugh is the victim of a series of self-published children's books.

The strange mandate of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh ended on Thursday when she resigned after a cloud of scandal and scrutiny around a series of self-published children's books. A scandal erupted in March when the Baltimore Sun announced that the sale of Pugh's "Healthy Holly" books raised serious ethical and legal issues. The books themselves are harmless, featuring a young Hollywood protagonist and positive themes about healthy eating and exercise, but it's the colossal $ 700,000 that the series brought back to Pugh that caused problems. In the six weeks that followed the beginning of the story, the 69-year-old Democrat faced raids from her home and the City Hall office. She took an extended break while the irregular stories continued to accumulate.

The number of copies sold by Pugh represents an impressive figure for 99% of authors, even less self-published, where sales can often range from a few hundred to thousands of thousands. The extraordinary success of the books written by a person in public office raised questions about who exactly was buying the books – and why. It turns out that the books were bought in large pieces by entities which before the government had affairs over which Pugh had an influence – first in the conference room, then in the mayor.

The medical system of the University of Maryland, for example, paid Pugh $ 500,000 for an order of £ 100,000. The order was executed in increments of 20,000 starting in 2011. "Joseph Cohen, Vice President of Kromar Printing in Winnipeg, Manitoba, said his company had received between $ 13,000 and $ 15,000 for each of its 20 000 book orders, "said the Washington Post. reports. This means that Pugh was getting close to $ 85,000 per lot of books, depending on shipping and other charges. At the time, Push was a senator and board member of the hospital network. In prison, Pugh was part of a committee that funded the hospital network.

Kaiser Permanente also paid Pugh, who was elected mayor in 2016, over $ 100,000 for an additional 20,000 copies. In 2017, the health care provider signed a $ 48 million contract with the city of Baltimore. The Associated Black Charities earned an additional $ 80,000 for 10,000 copies. While federal and state investigations plunge deeper into the financial mess, Pugh resigned on Thursday. "I am sorry for the damage I have done to the image of the city of Baltimore and the credibility of the mayor's office," she said. "Baltimore deserves a mayor to advance our great city."