CLAYTON, Mo.— A St. Louis County councilman could lose his seat amid accusation of a countywide cover up after he hired his stepdaughter as an assistant in August. 

Dennis Hancock, a councilman from Fenton, was allowed to stay in office despite an earlier effort to remove him by county prosecutor Wesley Bell. 

According to the Missouri constitution, hiring a relative means Hancock forfeits his position as a member of the St. Louis County Council.

Bell withdrew the petition, called a quo warrento, after Hancock's stepdaughter, Hollie Galati, resigned. 

During a press conference on Thursday, Bell announced he has filed a second quo warranto against Hancock. Bell said the new petition includes evidence that Hancock and other staff attempted to cover evidence of nepotism. 

“After the call between councilman Hancock and the original witness who advised him that you cannot cure nepotism, county clerk Diann Valenti, acting with others, began entering data in the ticketing system, trying to switch Galati’s status from that of new hire to rejected,” Bell said. 

St. Louis County clerk Diann Valenti was indicted last week, but it’s unclear which charges she faces. 

Newly released emails show Hancock emailed Galati’s start date and information to Valenti in mid-August. Additional evidence shows Galati was paid $24.88 an hour, contrary to Valenti’s claim that she was an unpaid volunteer. 

If Bell’s petition is approved, Hancock could be removed from the Council.

This is a developing story. 

Spectrum News has reached out to Hancock and Valenti for comment.