Eric Adams Indicted
On Thursday, 26 September, New York City Mayor Eric Adams was indicted on 5 federal charges, that read as follows:
- 1 count of “Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, Federal Program Bribery, and to Recieve Campaign Contributions by Foreign Nationals”;
- 1 count of “Wire Fraud”;
- 2 counts of “Solicitation of a Contribution by a Foreign National”, and
- 1 count of “Bribery”
The charges, handed down by Federal prosecutors in Manhattan, sent shockwaves through the local political system, putting Adams’ mayorship in serious jeopardy. With the indictment, Adams became the first sitting New York Mayor to be criminally indicted in modern history. Adams, however, stood characteristically strong, saying in a video the night before the charges were made public “I always know that if I stood my ground for all of you, that I would be a target. And a target I became”, in a clear attempt to frame himself as a leader who was fighting against the system.
The first charge of conspiracy – by far the lengthiest in the unsealed indictment – laid out the groundwork for the other 4 charges, detailing a roughly 9-year period “From at least in or about 2015 through at least in or about 2024” in which Adams and his associates allegedly engaged in illegal dealings – meetings, conferences, and secret conversations -with agents of foreign countries, including the reception of “contribution(s) and donation(s) from a foreign national (…) aggregating $25,000 and more in a calendar year” and “benefits over $10,000 under a federal program”. These gifts allegedly included but were not limited to, “free business tickets for himself and two companions” on flights from New York City to France, Turkey, Sri Lanka, and China, heavily discounted and free stays at luxury Istanbul hotels, as well as several ‘straw donations’ accepted from businessmen at fundraisers organized by Turkish officials. Adams is directly implicated in the crime of bribery, as it is alleged that “In return for travel benefits the Turkish Official provided or arranged (…) Adams (…) granted a political request from the Turkish Official”. While the specific political request remains unspecified in the unsealed indictment, Adams was serving as the Bronx Borough President, meaning that he was working directly with the Mayor, who at the time was Bill de Blasio, where one of his main duties was “to prepare the annual executive budget submitted to the City Council”. The second charge implies Adams in a “scheme (…) to defraud, and for obtaining money and property utilizing false and fraudulent pretenses”, that allegedly took place “From at least 2017 through at least in or about 2024”,
Eric Adams (center) Exciting a New York City Courthouse, After Pleading Not Guilty to Corruption Charges courtesy of “NY Times.”
Adams’ Turkish Money
The third and fourth charges, of ‘Solicitation of a Contribution by a Foreign National’ allege that in 2021 and 2023, Adams “knowingly and wilfully solicited, accepted, and received (…) contribution(s) and donation(s) from a foreign national (…) in connection with a local election, to wit, mayoral elections in the City of New York, aggregating $25,000 and more in a calendar year”. These charges concerned illegal dealings leading up to the 2021 New York City Mayoral Election, in which Adams defeated Republican Curtis Sliwa. The dealings under scrutiny include a 2019 trip to Istanbul made by Adams, during which he allegedly “solicited unlawful foreign campaign donations” from a wealthy Turkish businessman, who Adams was apparently “discouraged” from meeting, as the businessman was “then under suspicion of wrongdoing” domestically. During this meeting, the businessman allegedly “agreed to contribute $50,000 or more to the 2021 Campaign”, partly because he believed that Adams “might one day be the President of the United States”, and hoped to gain influence with him. Furthermore, the donations seemed to have notable political implications for Adams, rather than just fundraising. The indictment alleges that in April 2022 the Turkish official messaged one of Adams’ staffers, reminding them that Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day – a day in which the genocide of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire is commemorated – was approaching, and “repeatedly asked the Adams Staffer for assurances that Adams would not make any statement about the Armenian Genocide”. This was confirmed by the Adams staffer, and Adams indeed did not make any such statement on April 24th.
Adams in the Public Eye
Throughout the past week and a half, Adams has remained steadfast in his denial of any wrongdoing, telling an audience three days after the indictment was unsealed that “I’m not going to resign, I’m going to reign”. Adams’ plight attracted uncharacteristic – but perhaps not unexpected – support from former President Donald Trump, who disparaged the Justice Department as “dirty players”, and described the indictment “very old”, adding that “these are bad people, and we need an honest Justice Department, we need an honest FBI, and we need it fast”. While Adams remains committed to staying in his post, he has been rebuked by the general public, with a Marist poll finding that “69% of New York City residents, including 71% of Democrats, think Adams should resign as Mayor”, with a further 63% of residents saying that “Governor (Kathy) Hochul should begin the process of removing Adams from his position if he does not resign”. These numbers – along with a 74% disapproval rating – almost certainly guarantee that Adams will not run for a second term next year if he is even eligible to do so. Prosecutors told a judge that it was “possible” that a superseding indictment would be filed, which would level additional charges against Adams, making his political and personal situation more tenuous.
Featured image courtesy of Reuters, Eric Adams, Mayor of New York City, has been charged in an allegedly years-long conspiracy involving the solicitation and acceptance of illegal campaign contributions, as well as generous handouts.
