Grand jury investigating development deals involving former Hogsett deputy Thomas Cook

Hayleigh Colombo, Tony Cook and Ryan Murphy, Indianapolis Star

Tue, January 6, 2026 at 6:02 PM UTC

4 min read

A Marion County grand jury is investigating city development deals involving Mayor Joe Hogsett's former chief of staff Thomas Cook, along with allegations of unlawful touching and communication.

A quarterly grand jury report obtained by IndyStar through a public records request shows that the grand jury met five times in November and December to hear testimony in its "investigation into the unlawful touching and/or unlawful communication by a public servant or person" between 2019 and 2023, and the "unlawful pecuniary interest in a contract of a public servant and/or former public servant."

The full scope of the grand jury investigation is unclear, but the report follows an IndyStar and Mirror Indy investigation that found that Cook, Hogsett's former right-hand man, cashed in on his ties with Hogsett by getting a job at a prominent downtown law firm after his departure from the city and then helping high-profile developer clients score millions of dollars worth of city incentives from the Hogsett administration. Some of those clients were donors to Hogsett's campaign.

The incentives have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest since the person who led the city agency with power to recommend which projects received taxpayer dollars was the same woman whose relationship with Cook led to his resignation from the city.

The city's Department of Metropolitan Development, then led by Scarlett Andrews, awarded or recommended at least $80 million to projects with ties to Cook's clients.

Cook was accused in 2024 of sexual misconduct by three women who served as his subordinates over the course of the previous decade. In the 2024 IndyStar article, Lauren Roberts, Caroline Ellert and a third anonymous woman accused him of sexual harassment and abuse of power, while Ellert also accused him of sexually assaulting her back in 2019.

A subsequent investigation ordered by the Indianapolis City-County Council later revealed Cook was forced to resign from Hogsett's administration in 2020 because of a prohibited relationship with Andrews, a subordinate who is not one of the three women accusing Cook of misconduct.

The fourth quarter grand jury report doesn't detail much else about its investigation, as most details are confidential. Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears declined to comment on the grand jury report.

A previous quarterly report shows that a Marion County Grand Jury met at least one other time, in the fourth quarter of 2024, to hear testimony in the investigation.

Neither Cook nor Andrews have been charged with a crime, and a grand jury investigation isn't an indication that a crime occurred. They didn't respond to IndyStar's request for comment about the grand jury.

Indiana law defines pecuniary interest as an interest in a contract or purchase if it will result or is intended to result in an "ascertainable increase in the income or net worth of a public servant" or their dependent.

Indiana law also states that it's a conflict of interest, a level 6 felony, for a public servant to knowingly or intentionally have a pecuniary interest in or derive a profit from a contract or purchase connected with an action by the governmental entity served by the public servant.

It's unclear if anyone from the mayor's office or administration was interviewed by the grand jury. A spokeswoman for Hogsett declined to comment, saying it would be "inappropriate for anyone to comment on grand jury proceedings."

'Mr. Clean' investigation: Hogsett ignored Thomas Cook's secret relationship as money flowed to developers

Cook was fired from the law firm, Bose McKinney & Evans, in July 2024 after IndyStar reported that three women who reported to Cook in various roles had accused him of harassment, including allegations of abuse. Hogsett knew at least one woman, Lauren Roberts, had made allegations against Cook years earlier and said he verbally reprimanded Cook. Cook has since apologized for relationships "that violated a trust placed in me."

Bose later told IndyStar and Mirror Indy that the law firm was never informed that Cook had been disciplined or asked to resign by the city.

The grand jury's ongoing investigation into Cook's behavior follows IndyStar reporting from 2024 that Indiana State Police detectives and Marion County Prosecutor's Office previously interviewed multiple people about Cook's alleged behavior.

Law enforcement officials from both agencies said at the time that they couldn't confirm the existence of investigations, however, IndyStar was able to confirm that Indiana State Police detectives had reviewed potential evidence and interviewed multiple people about Cook in coordination with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office.

Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at hcolombo@indystar.com or follow her on X @hayleighcolombo.

Contact investigative reporter Tony Cook at tony.cook@indystar.com or follow him on X @indystartony.

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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Grand jury probing contract involving former Hogsett deputy Thomas Cook

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