Criminal Charges Faced by New York Mayor
Eric Adams has made history as the first sitting mayor of New York City to face indictment, accused of soliciting and accepting bribes. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
The US government has charged Eric Adams, marking him as the first sitting mayor in New York City’s 400-year history to face federal criminal charges.
On Thursday morning, federal prosecutors from the Southern District of New York unsealed the indictment against Adams, who is the city’s second black mayor. The existence of the indictment was publicly disclosed a day earlier.
US Attorney Damian Williams announced the charges, emphasizing the commitment to combat corruption, "especially when that corruption takes the form of illegal foreign influence on our democratic system."
The indictment includes five counts of federal crimes against Adams, such as conspiracy, wire fraud, solicitation of campaign contributions from foreign nationals, and bribery. It alleges that since 2014, Adams has accepted approximately $100,000 in upgrades from Turkish Airlines and luxury hotels in Türkiye. Furthermore, he purportedly solicited and accepted "straw" donations from Turkish nationals, enabling him to access $10 million in matching campaign funds from the State of New York.
Prosecutors cited two examples where Adams allegedly repaid favors: placing a Turkish national on his transition team post-election in 2020 and pressuring the New York Fire Department in September 2021 for a temporary fire safety certificate for the 36-story Turkish consulate to facilitate a visit from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In response to the indictment, Adams released a two-minute video message stating the charges “will be entirely false based on lies.”
“I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Adams declared in the video. “If I am charged, I am innocent and will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
Adams also suggested he was subject to political persecution, pointing out that the corruption investigation commenced following his public criticism of President Joe Biden's “broken immigration policies,” which he claimed had “overloaded our shelter system with no relief.” Notably, both Biden and Adams belong to the Democratic Party.
The FBI conducted a raid at the home of Brianna Suggs, one of Adams' key fundraisers, on November 2 of the previous year. At that time, Adams had been in Washington voicing concerns about the influx of asylum seekers but returned to New York abruptly.
Adams’ attorney, Alex Spiro, issued a statement condemning the SDNY for “improper leaks” and generating “the spectacle of a bogus raid,” while highlighting that federal judges have previously criticized their actions for “spinning in front of the cameras and tainting jurors.”
“But they keep doing it because they can’t help themselves, the spotlight is just too exciting. We will see them in court,” Spiro commented.
Furthermore, federal authorities are investigating Adams’s alleged ties with individuals from five other countries, including China, Israel, Qatar, South Korea, and Uzbekistan. The inquiry has also extended to two deputy mayors, a police commissioner, a top aide to Adams, and his advisor on Asian Affairs.
While many New York City mayoral administrations in the past 45 years have faced corruption inquiries, Adams is the first mayor to be charged with crimes while in office.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
On Thursday morning, federal prosecutors from the Southern District of New York unsealed the indictment against Adams, who is the city’s second black mayor. The existence of the indictment was publicly disclosed a day earlier.
US Attorney Damian Williams announced the charges, emphasizing the commitment to combat corruption, "especially when that corruption takes the form of illegal foreign influence on our democratic system."
The indictment includes five counts of federal crimes against Adams, such as conspiracy, wire fraud, solicitation of campaign contributions from foreign nationals, and bribery. It alleges that since 2014, Adams has accepted approximately $100,000 in upgrades from Turkish Airlines and luxury hotels in Türkiye. Furthermore, he purportedly solicited and accepted "straw" donations from Turkish nationals, enabling him to access $10 million in matching campaign funds from the State of New York.
Prosecutors cited two examples where Adams allegedly repaid favors: placing a Turkish national on his transition team post-election in 2020 and pressuring the New York Fire Department in September 2021 for a temporary fire safety certificate for the 36-story Turkish consulate to facilitate a visit from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In response to the indictment, Adams released a two-minute video message stating the charges “will be entirely false based on lies.”
“I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Adams declared in the video. “If I am charged, I am innocent and will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
Adams also suggested he was subject to political persecution, pointing out that the corruption investigation commenced following his public criticism of President Joe Biden's “broken immigration policies,” which he claimed had “overloaded our shelter system with no relief.” Notably, both Biden and Adams belong to the Democratic Party.
The FBI conducted a raid at the home of Brianna Suggs, one of Adams' key fundraisers, on November 2 of the previous year. At that time, Adams had been in Washington voicing concerns about the influx of asylum seekers but returned to New York abruptly.
Adams’ attorney, Alex Spiro, issued a statement condemning the SDNY for “improper leaks” and generating “the spectacle of a bogus raid,” while highlighting that federal judges have previously criticized their actions for “spinning in front of the cameras and tainting jurors.”
“But they keep doing it because they can’t help themselves, the spotlight is just too exciting. We will see them in court,” Spiro commented.
Furthermore, federal authorities are investigating Adams’s alleged ties with individuals from five other countries, including China, Israel, Qatar, South Korea, and Uzbekistan. The inquiry has also extended to two deputy mayors, a police commissioner, a top aide to Adams, and his advisor on Asian Affairs.
While many New York City mayoral administrations in the past 45 years have faced corruption inquiries, Adams is the first mayor to be charged with crimes while in office.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
