(The Center Square) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams was arraigned Friday on federal bribery, conspiracy and campaign finance charges, marking the first time the city’s mayor has faced a judge on criminal charges.
Adams, who was booked and fingerprinted after turning himself into federal authorities on Friday morning, pleaded not guilty to the five-count indictment during his brief appearance in a Manhattan courtroom on corruption and bribery charges that could force him out of office.
The indictment, unveiled by the U.S. Attorney for Southern New York on Thursday, accuses the Democrat of seeking and accepting more than $100,000 in illegal gifts, like travel and campaign contributions from the Turkish government and wealthy foreign business owners dating back to his days as Brooklyn borough president. He’s also accused of accepting more than $10 million in illegal ‘straw’ donations traced to Turkey.
Adams is the first sitting mayor of New York City to be indicted on federal charges. If convicted, he faces up to 45 years in prison.
However, he denied the allegations in the 57-page federal indictment, calling the accusations “lies” and saying he was prepared to fight the charges in court.
“I follow the rules, I follow the law,” the Democrat said in a news conference outside Gracie Mansion on Thursday. “I do not do anything that’s going to participate in illegal campaign activity.”
But federal prosecutors allege in the indictment that Adams was not only aware of the illegal activity but actually encouraged it. In exchange for free travel perks and illegal campaign contributions, Adams pressured an official with the New York Fire Department to allow a Turkish consulate building to open despite safety concerns, federal prosecutors said.
“By allegedly taking improper and illegal benefits from foreign nationals — including to allow a Manhattan skyscraper to open without a fire inspection — Adams put the interests of his benefactors, including a foreign official, above those of his constituents,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said in remarks on Thursday.
Adams, 64, is a former NYPD captain elected nearly three years ago pledging to reduce crime and guide the city out of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the news of federal investigations targeting his administration began surfacing last year after authorities searched the home of Adams’ chief fundraiser, Brianna Suggs, for his 2021 mayoral run.
The investigations have prompted the resignations of Ed Caban, Commissioner of the New York Police Department, and the city’s health commissioner and the city’s school chancellor, David Banks, whose brother, Deputy Mayor Phil Banks, and fiancée Sheena Wright, who serves as a deputy mayor as well were among City Hall officials to have devices seized as part of the investigations.
More than a dozen other Adams administration officials have either been questioned or had their homes raided by FBI agents as part of the investigations, according to published reports.
His indictment on the charges has prompted calls for his resignation from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and several of Adams’ rivals in next year’s Democratic primary.
But other high-profile New York Democrats, such as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, have stopped short of calling for Adams to step down.
“No one is above the law, including the Mayor of New York City,” Schumer said in a statement Thursday. “The charges are serious, and the legal process should now play out speedily and fairly.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who has the authority to remove Adams from office, said in a statement that she expects the now-indicted mayor “to take the next few days to review the situation and find an appropriate path forward to ensure the people of New York City are being well-served by their leaders.”
