TRENTON -- Paul Sigmund, chief of staff to Trenton Mayor Tony Mack, faces five charges including heroin possession and aggravated assault on a police officer following his arrest this morning just blocks from city hall, authorities said.

Sigmund, 46, is currently in jail and his case may be transferred to neighboring Lawrence Township to avoid any conflict of interest, said Trenton municipal Prosecutor Lyle Hough.

Sigmund was arrested this morning in the Hanover Academy section of Trenton and his city-issued Ford Escape was found nearby, according to acting Trenton Police Director Joe Juniak. The SUV was towed, he said.

Sigmund is charged with heroin possession, two counts of aggravated assault on a police officer, obstruction and resisting arrest, Juniak said.

Lauren Ira, spokeswoman for Mayor Tony Mack, said Sigmund has been relieved of all duites indefinitely and is expected to undergo drug rehabilitation.

Sigmund, who previously served on the Mercer County freeholder board with Mack, joined the administration in March after the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs recommended Mack hire a chief of staff.

During his short time working for the city, Sigmund was also charged with speeding and driving a city-owned SUV without a license.

Sigmund comes from a family that is well-known in Mercer County and nationally. His grandfather, Hale Boggs, served as a congressman from Louisiana, and his grandmother, Lindy Boggs, succeeded her husband in Congress after his death.

His aunt is Cokie Roberts, a journalist with National Public Radio and ABC News. Sigmund’s mother, who worked for President John F. Kennedy and founded the nonprofit organization Womanspace, died in 1990. His father is an emeritus professor at Princeton University.

Sigmund worked as an executive for RCN Corp. in California before being tapped for the chief of staff job by Mack. He moved from California to accept the position.

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