ALLENTOWN, Pa. – Lehigh County Commissioner Zachary Cole Borghi is being accused of purchasing and selling cocaine from his home and while working at Bethlehem City Hall.

He also facilitated a drug transaction during a meeting of the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners, according to a news release from the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.

Cole Borghi was one of several defendants in a large-scale drug investigation involving Lehigh County’s 12th Investigating Grand Jury, the DA’s office said.

As those details were announced last year, the investigation remained ongoing. As part of that investigation, the DA’s office said search warrants were approved for Cole Borghi’s cellphone and Apple iCloud records. A forensic analysis of the cellphone and Apple iCloud records revealed text messages beginning in 2021 and ending in August 2025, according to the news release.

Bethlehem City Council addresses arrest, firing of right-to-know officer

The DA’s office said those text messages showed Cole Borghi conducting drug transactions beginning in November 2023 through August 2025.

According to the DA’s office, those text messages indicate that Cole Borghi used his cellphone to conduct drug deals beginning in November 2023 through August 2025. The DA’s office said the locations those crimes occurred include Cole Borghi’s home in the 700 block of Spring Street in Bethlehem (Lehigh County); a relative’s home in the 300 block of 6th Avenue in Bethlehem (Lehigh County); Bethlehem City Hall where Cole Borghi was employed (Northampton County); and Upper Saucon Township (Lehigh County).

Lehigh County Commissioner arrested on drug charges, amid multi-state investigation that led to 22 arrests

The investigation also revealed that Cole Borghi facilitated a drug transaction during a meeting of the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners, the DA’s office said.

The DA’s office said the new criminal charges include:

• 89 counts of Criminal Use of a Communications Facility

• 14 counts of Delivery of a Controlled Substance (Cocaine)

• One count delivery of controlled substance (Psilocybin mushrooms)

The investigation revealed a cocaine sale at Northampton County Community College while Cole Borghi was attending the “Peace and Justice Symposium” presented by the Lehigh Valley Justice Institute, the DA’s office said.

The investigation also revealed that Cole Borghi purchased and sold cocaine from his home and while working at Bethlehem City Hall, according to the DA’s office.

Each charge of Criminal Use of a Communications Facility alleges that Cole Borghi used a “communication facility” such as a cellphone, to commit, cause, facilitate, or attempt to facilitate a felony drug offense, according to the news release.

Cole Borghi was taken into custody Wednesday morning in the City of Bethlehem and is currently awaiting his preliminary arraignment at Lehigh County’s Central Booking Center.