Top leaders at the Massachusetts Republican Party called on an embattled Cape Cod Democrat to resign from his post after local police in Barnstable said federal prosecutors were investigating the lawmaker for “potential criminal activity.

Barnstable police said in a press release that it received a report about "potential criminal activity” related to state Rep. Chris Flanagan and his reelection campaign. The department said the U.S. attorney's office for Massachusetts has picked up the investigation.

Police on Friday said they referred " potential criminal activity " involving Flanagan to federal investigators, and the GOP issued a statement Tuesday asking him to step down, or be expelled by his House colleagues.