Detroit demo disaster: New questions, no answers
The City of Detroit says it's busting blight block by block. The city's goal is 100 a week but the numbers aren't even close. During the big Angels' Night blitz in the last week of October, they took down just 29 structures. Last week, it was 40. In those two weeks combined, it's not even 100.
The city said everything was great about demolition and the $100 million in federal bucks used to pay for it. At least, they did until Charlie called Mayor Mike Duggan on his minions on the skyrocketing costs of demolition.
The mayor's first defense was to blame the dirt.
"Trucking costs went up because we're demanding prompt service of clean fill," Duggan said.
Then, it was the state's fault.
"The state is responsible for putting out the bids, awarding the contracts and everything we enter into is with their approval," he said.
"You've seen the costs. The costs are in every single bid," he said. "Charlie, you've gotten every single number."
When Charlie found out about secret negotiations between the city and preferred contractors - some of whom donate thousands to Duggan - the Mayor admitted to those secret meetings.
Then he blamed the state.
"It's not collusion when you're sending a letter to the state saying here's the set price," he said.
That strategy hasn't gone too well. So now, the Mayor and his mouthpieces are done talking. They won't come out from behind closed doors and answer new questions. Why? The deeper Charlie digs, the more dirt he finds.
According to new emails and documents obtained by FOX 2, those same preferred contractors got together yet again last July and demanded millions of dollars more for demolitions they had already agreed to perform for a set and lower price. The city agreed to the new price, driving up the demolition price by another 40 percent.
So Charlie dug. And things got weird. Very weird. From secret meetings with contractors, potential price fixing, all with millions of dollars in federal money. The guys responsible? They hid behind closed doors - but that won't make Charlie go away.
WATCH: See what happened when Charlie knocked on more doors in the video above.