The 57-page federal corruption indictment of Mayor Eric Adams begins not with hizzoner’s alleged misdeeds at City Hall, but at Brooklyn Borough Hall.
“In 2014, Eric Adams, the defendant, became Brooklyn Borough President,” the document reads. “Thereafter, for nearly a decade, Adams sought and accepted improper valuable benefits, such as luxury international travel, including from wealthy foreign businesspeople and at least one Turkish government official seeking to gain influence over him.”
Federal officials have accused Adams of bribery, wire fraud, and seeking out donations from foreign officials. Since news of the indictment broke on Wednesday night, dozens of elected officials have called on the mayor to resign — including his successor at Borough Hall, reigning Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.
“The Mayor cannot lead this city, nor can he in good faith ask the public to put their trust in him,” the beep said in a statement released after the indictment was unsealed. “I ask the Mayor to put New Yorkers first and resign.”
The indictment came after a months-long investigation that came into the public eye last fall, when the Federal Bureau of Investigation searched the home of Adams’ campaign fundraiser and seized the mayor’s phones. Earlier this month, officials raided the homes of several of the administration’s top officials, two of whom have since resigned.
Reynoso said the news of Adams’ indictment was “unbelievable.”
“I didn’t think the investigation would lead to him,” he told Brooklyn Paper. “I thought maybe there was a circle of corruption happening around him, and didn’t think that he would necessarily be ensared into it.”
Foreign relations at Brooklyn Borough Hall
In New York City, the borough presidents hold a largely ceremonial role. They don’t have the ability to introduce legislation or vote on the city budget, and don’t have direct control over city agencies like the mayor….
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