Local News

Lawsuit dismissed over resignation that followed alleged bathroom sex talk in auditor’s office

A former field auditor claimed he was forced to resign after he was accused of describing his sexual exploits to a coworker “in graphic detail” in an office bathroom.

The Massachusetts State House in Boston. David L. Ryan/Boston Globe

January 17, 2025

3 minutes to read

A Massachusetts judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the Office of the State Auditor, thwarting a former staffer who claimed he was forced to resign “to avoid bloodshed” after he was accused of sexually harassing a coworker in an office bathroom.

Judge David A. Deakin sided with State Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s office, determining a Suffolk Superior Court complaint from former field auditor Kehinde Olatunji Adedeji didn’t meet legal standards.

Adedeji’s lawsuit stemmed from his Sept. 27 meeting with two officials from DiZoglio’s office, General Counsel Michael Leung-Tat and Executive Deputy State Auditor Stephen Lisauskas. By the meeting’s end, Adedeji said he felt he had no choice but to resign.

“Suspecting that they may kill me on that day in the office … against my wish, I resigned my employment to avoid bloodshed of me, an innocent person,” he wrote in his complaint, originally filed in October. The Boston Herald first reported news of the lawsuit.

Representing himself in court, Adedeji named DiZoglio’s office and a handful of staff members in his complaint. He sought the reversal of his resignation and $555,000 in compensation for “forced termination of my employment, harassments, hates, lies, slanders, discriminations and defamations [sic].”

Deakin previously rejected Adedeji’s request for a preliminary injunction to reinstate his employment. Reached for comment, Leung-Tat pointed to Deakin’s prior order as a source of “relevant context” for Adedeji’s complaint and allegations.

“As this is a personnel issue, we are limited in our ability to comment on this matter,” Leung-Tat said.

In an email to Boston.com, Adedeji called Deakin’s dismissal of the lawsuit an “injustice.”

“I will appeal the judgement or pursue it in the Federal court,” he vowed. Adedeji has filed a similar complaint in federal court and also indicated he’s attempting to take his case up with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.

Auditor’s office responds

In court filings, the Office of the State Auditor alleged Adedeji “began to demonstrate troubling behavior” soon after he was hired in October 2023.

DiZoglio’s office accused Adedeji of failing to disclose his ownership of a charter transportation company and said he made a Facebook post “in which he seemed to use his position as a state auditor to influence the actions of the Massachusetts State Police and Lynn Police.” The office also alleged Adedeji filmed himself and coworkers without their consent and posted the videos to social media.

For his part, Adedeji said he disclosed his small business and shot the videos outside working hours. The clips, he claimed, “connoted no negativity; rather it shows a happy, healthy and easy-going staff.”

In court documents, the auditor’s office further alleged Adedeji “continued to exhibit inappropriate behavior in the workplace, to the point that most other auditors in the office refused to work with him and female interns expressed discomfort with his attempts to connect with them on social media.”

In one notable incident, Adedeji allegedly described his sexual exploits to a coworker “in graphic detail” while in a bathroom, according to the auditor’s office, which accused him of attributing the comments to “boys’ talk” and threatening to retaliate against the employee who reported his behavior and those who investigated the incident.

He allegedly told human resources that employees talked about all types of “naughty stuff” in the restroom, adding, “we guys, we deal like boys inside that bathroom,” the auditor’s office said. Adedeji has denied the sexual harassment allegation.

‘I deserve justice’

Leung-Tat and Lisauskas met with Adedeji on Sept. 27 to discuss the future of his employment, explaining his paths forward included resignation and potentially termination, the auditor’s office said. Despite assurances that he had time to weigh his options, Adedeji allegedly “demanded a scrap of paper so he could immediately resign.”

But Adedeji had a different memory of the meeting. He alleges Leung-Tat held a typed letter of termination, while Lisauskas held a plain sheet of paper.

“[Leung-Tat] echoed thus, ‘You have the options to resign your employment right now or we get your employment terminated.’ He further said ‘If you resign, it is easy for you to still work with other government agencies in Massachusetts but if we terminate your employment, you can never work for any government agency in Massachusetts,’” Adedeji wrote in his complaint.

DiZoglio’s office said Adedeji continued to contact the office after his resignation, using “language that employees found increasingly threatening.” The Office of the State Auditor issued a no-trespass order against Adedeji in October.

Adedeji cited the Bible in one of his subsequent court filings, arguing, “As a Christian, I reserved the right to be angry without being violent.”

He added: “Instead of violence, I turned to Suffolk Superior Court for help and justice. I understand that the court of laws are not made for animals but for aggrieved human beings like me. I deserve justice sir.”