(AFP) – New York Mayor Eric Adams pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of fraud and bribery in a case that marks a stunning downfall for a man once touted as a future Democratic Party star. Adams, who appeared before a judge in a Manhattan federal court, is the first sitting New York mayor to be criminally indicted. He is accused of wire fraud, soliciting illegal campaign donations, and a bribery conspiracy involving Turkish citizens and at least one Turkish official. Judge Katherine Parker set the next hearing for Wednesday.
The allegations prompted calls for his resignation, but Adams has remained defiant, saying on Thursday that he is looking “forward to defending myself” and urging New Yorkers to “wait to hear our side of the story.” Accompanied by aides, the 64-year-old mayor made no comments to waiting reporters Friday but gave a thumbs-up as he entered the courthouse. He wore a dark blue suit and a purple tie. “I am not guilty, your honor,” he said in court.
Presenting the charges on Thursday, US District Attorney Damian Williams said the mayor was “secretly being showered” with gifts for years. “The conduct alleged in the indictment — the foreign money, the corporate money, the years of concealment — is a grave breach of the public’s trust,” Williams told journalists.
The 57-page document accuses the mayor of America’s biggest city of crimes going back a decade, when Adams, a Democrat, took office as Brooklyn’s borough president. According to the charges, he accepted luxury international flights, hotel suites, and free high-end restaurant meals including from Turkish associates in return for favors. In one example, prosecutors say Adams pressured the city’s fire department to approve Turkey’s new high-rise consulate in Manhattan despite safety concerns. “The Turkish official got what he wanted, and as we explained in the indictment, just four days after Adams held up his end of the bargain, he went right back to soliciting more travel benefits,” Williams said.
Scandal has swirled around Adams for months, with several high-ranking allies resigning as others were indicted or raided by federal agents. The drama escalated with a pre-dawn raid of his official residence early Thursday. Some city and state officials have demanded he resign, including influential New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who said Adams must step down “for the good of the city.”
The indictment risks embarrassing Democrats weeks before the presidential election between Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, who are polling neck and neck. Adams, the second Black mayor in the city’s history, won the 2021 Democratic primary vowing to reduce crime, which did fall after rising during the Covid pandemic. But the city of 8.5 million people faces a housing crisis that has seen rents skyrocket. Adams is up for reelection next year.
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