Foreign bribes, cheap flights: What is Eric Adams accused of?

Yahoo

15-02-2025

US prosecutors have filed a motion to drop charges against New York City Eric Adams that accused him of bribery and fraud as part of a "long-running" scheme to enrich himself while working with foreign officials.
The request to drop the charges will require approval by a judge.
Adams is alleged to have accepted illegal gifts worth over $100,000 (£75,000) from Turkish citizens and at least one government official.
Adams, a former police captain, denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.
Here's what we know.
In early February, an order from acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove, who was appointed by Donald Trump, said the indictment had "restricted" the mayor's ability to address "illegal immigration and violent crime" in the city.
Bove ordered local federal prosecutors to drop the charges, triggering a backlash from the group of seasoned lawyers who issued statements opposing the move.
More than half a dozen prosecutors said they would refuse the order, because the justice department had not provided sufficient legal justification to drop the charges.
Who is Danielle Sassoon, prosecutor who quit in protest from Trump justice department?
According to Reuters, the acting deputy called the prosecutors into a room on 14 February and threatened to fire anyone who did not execute the order.
"No system of ordered liberty can allow the Government to use the carrot of dismissing charges, or the stick of threatening to bring them again, to induce an elected official to support its policy objectives," one prosecutor, Hagan Scotten, wrote in a resignation letter.
"If no lawyer within earshot of the President is willing to give him that advice, then I expect you will eventually find someone who is enough of a fool, or enough of a coward, to file your motion," he continued.
Another prosecutor who quit over the order, Danielle Sassoon, said Adams' lawyers had met justice department officials and asked for a "quid pro quo", saying the New York City mayor could help enforce Trump's immigration policies if the case against him was dismissed.
Adams denied her claim, telling Fox News that she was accusing him of "a crime".
Eric Adams is facing five separate criminal counts, including "conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery, and to receive campaign contributions by foreign nationals", wire fraud, two counts of solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national and bribery.
According to the 57-page indictment, Adams is alleged to have accepted more than $100,000 in luxury travel - including hotel stays, lavish meals and airline upgrades - from Turkish nationals beginning in 2016, when he still served as president of the New York borough of Brooklyn.
In one instance, for example, Adams is alleged to have received a "heavily discounted" stay at the "Bentley Room" of Istanbul's St Regis hotel, paying $600 for a two-day visit that was valued at approximately $7,000.
Additionally, Adams is alleged to have sought out campaign contributions from Turkish sources for his 2021 mayoral election campaign.
None of this was publicly declared, and prosecutors claimed Adams used "straw donors" to hide the sources of the money, and at times created "fake paper trails" that suggested he paid, or intended to pay, for the gifts.
One of the charges in the indictment - wire fraud - stems from allegations that Adams devised a scheme to obtain money "by making false and fraudulent pretences" in his dealings.
Specifically, prosecutors claim that the money Adams obtained from Turkey allowed him to qualify for a public financing programme that provides eligible political candidates with funds to match donations from New York City residents.
As part of the initiative, known as the Matching Funds Program, candidates are prohibited from accepting contributions from people who are not US citizens or lawful residents, as well as corporations and foreign entities and organisations.
According to the justice department filing, Adams fraudulently obtained as much as $2,000 in public funds for each illegal contribution.
In exchange for the campaign contributions and lavish travel, Adams is alleged to have responded to a variety of concerns from Turkish nationals and at least one government official.
In 2016, for example, the indictment claimed that Adams was told that he would cut ties with a Turkish community centre in Brooklyn after a Turkish official told him it was affiliated with a group "hostile" to Turkey's government.
That Turkish official also reportedly told him that he could no longer associate with the centre if he wished to keep receiving "support" from Turkey's government.
In another instance in 2021, prosecutors alleged that Adams - at the behest of a Turkish diplomat - also pressured an official from New York's fire department to help make sure the new Turkish consular building in the city was ready for a visit from Turkey's president - without a fire inspection.
The fire department official responsible for the assessment of the skyscraper consulate building was told he would lose his job if he failed to approve the building, prosecutors alleged.
In that instance, the indictment claims that a Turkish official told Adams it was "his turn to repay" him.
"After Adams intervened, the skyscraper opened as requested by the Turkish official," the indictment says.
Adams has denied these claims, saying: "I know I don't take money from foreign donors."
In theory, Adams is facing a lengthy prison sentence for the charges.
The wire fraud count alone carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, while both counts of soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals each carry a maximum sentence of five years.
The bribery charge carries a maximum charge of 10 years in prison.
The remaining charge, "conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery, and to receive campaign contributions by foreign nationals" carries with it a maximum sentence of five years.
In the shorter-term, the charges could still imperil Adams' political future ahead of his 2025 re-election bid.
The governor of New York state, Kathy Hochul, has the power to remove Adams from office.
While she has not said she would take such action, she also indicated on Friday she hasn't entirely ruled it out.
Seven attorneys resign after order to drop Eric Adams criminal case
Who is Danielle Sassoon, prosecutor who quit in protest from Trump justice department?
NYC mayor charged with taking bribes and illegal campaign funds
New York City mayor's chief counsel resigns amid federal probes