2 hours ago
3
The Manhattan District Attorney’s bureau successful the United States has unveiled 4 indictments against a high-level subordinate of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, adding to the ineligible jeopardy his medication faces during a choky predetermination season.
Ingrid Lewis-Martin, her lad Glenn Martin II and 7 different co-defendants were charged connected Thursday for what the prosecutor’s bureau called a “wide-ranging bid of bribery conspiracies”.
Nicknamed the “Lioness of City Hall”, Lewis-Martin formerly served arsenic a main advisor to Adams. But she resigned successful December amid a corruption investigation.
In a statement, District Attorney Alvin Bragg accused Lewis-Martin of putting her idiosyncratic nett implicit the needs of New York City residents.
“We allege that Ingrid Lewis-Martin engaged successful classical bribery conspiracies that had a heavy and wide-ranging interaction connected City government,” Bragg said successful the statement.
“Lewis-Martin consistently overrode the expertise of nationalist servants truthful she could enactment her ain pockets. While she allegedly received much than $75,000 successful bribes and an quality connected a TV show, each different New Yorker mislaid out.”
Thursday’s indictments were the latest to roil Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence successful New York City.
Since taking bureau successful 2022, Adams, a erstwhile constabulary officer, has faced a cascade of scandals that eroded his nationalist support.
That, successful turn, has proven to beryllium fodder for his opponents arsenic Adams seeks re-election successful the 2025 mayoral race, scheduled for November.
The contention is seen arsenic a litmus trial for the Democratic Party, and US President Donald Trump, a Republican, has voiced enactment for Adams and absorption to the Democratic nominee, Zohran Mamdani.
Then-chief advisor Ingrid Lewis-Martin, right, sits adjacent to Eric Adams during a quality league connected November 14, 2023 [Mike Segar/Reuters]Inside the scandals
Lewis-Martin is 1 of respective apical Adams aides who person resigned implicit the past twelvemonth successful the look of corruption scandals.
Shortly aft her departure from the Adams medication successful December, the Manhattan District Attorney’s bureau issued an archetypal indictment against her and her son, a euphony shaper who works nether the sanction Suave Luciano.
It alleged they “traded connected the entree and power of her presumption successful speech for much than $100,000 successful checks and cash” from existent property developers.
Lewis-Martin and her lad were accused of accepting the wealth successful speech for expediting the support of operation permits and helping with rejected applications.
Those decisions, the indictment said, were made “without respect to information considerations oregon the Department of Buildings’ expertise”.
In the latest bid of indictments, Lewis-Martin and Martin II look akin bribery charges. In 1 case, the territory lawyer accuses them of fast-tracking a residential renovation program astatine the Department of Buildings successful speech for astir $10,000 worthy of escaped catering, including crab cakes, octopus and salmon dishes.
In different instance, Lewis-Martin is accused of having “interfered” with the Department of Transportation’s plans to instal motorcycle lanes connected a New York City boulevard, successful an effort to delight the owners of a adjacent company, Broadway Stages, which offers services for TV and movie productions.
In return, the accumulation institution owners allegedly gave Lewis-Martin a speaking relation connected the TV amusement Godfather of Harlem, arsenic good arsenic wealth and catering services.
A 3rd indictment claims Lewis-Martin worked to “steer contracts” for asylum seeker shelters to an associate’s “preferred spot owners”.
Lewis-Martin and her lad person antecedently denied the allegations against them, and their ineligible representatives person dismissed the charges arsenic politically motivated.
The drawstring of indictments follows yet different ungraded earlier this week involving different adjacent advisor to Adams, Winnie Greco.
The section media outlet The City reported that Greco passed its newsman an envelope of wealth hidden successful a container of sour-cream-and-onion chips, and she was subsequently suspended from Adams’s campaign.
Eric Adams run worldly advertises that the incumbent politician ‘never quits’ [Eduardo Munoz/Reuters]Adams nether the spotlight
Adams himself has travel nether scrutiny for bribery and run finance-related offenses.
In September 2024, the US Department of Justice, nether then-President Joe Biden, revealed a transgression indictment against the New York City mayor, making him the archetypal sitting politician of the metropolis to look national charges.
Prosecutors claimed Adams had “abused his presumption arsenic this City’s highest elected official” by taking bribes and soliciting amerciable run contributions.
In 1 case, the prosecutors said Adams had pushed the New York City Fire Department to let the Turkish consulate to unfastened an bureau successful a section precocious emergence without a occurrence inspection, truthful that it could beryllium acceptable for a sojourn from Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In exchange, Adams allegedly received escaped oregon reduced-cost question connected Turkey’s nationalist airline, luxury edifice stays and escaped nutrient and amusement portion connected a sojourn to the country.
The indictment besides accused Adams of soliciting “straw” contributions for his predetermination bid, whereby donors bypass run concern laws by funnelling their wealth done different idiosyncratic instead.
Adams has maintained his innocence and called the prosecution an effort to derail his re-election hopes.
Though helium ran successful 2021 arsenic a centrist Democrat, helium has since rebranded himself arsenic an autarkic and grown person to President Trump, a Republican.
Adams has met respective times with Trump’s borderline czar Tom Homan, and successful the lead-up to Trump’s 2nd inauguration successful January, helium travelled to Mar-a-Lago successful southbound Florida to conscionable with the soon-to-be president.
An indictment’s reversal
Shortly aft taking office, Trump’s Justice Department ordered the national charges against Adams to beryllium dropped. Several vocation prosecutors resigned successful protest.
One of those prosecutors, Hagan Scotten, published a powerfully worded missive upon his departure. “I expect you volition yet find idiosyncratic who is capable of a fool, oregon capable of a coward, to record your motion,” Scotten said. “But it was ne'er going to beryllium me.”
Eventually the question was filed, and a justice successful New York agreed to flip the lawsuit successful April, connected the ground that helium could not compel prosecutors to act.
But that judge, Dale Ho, expressed scepticism astir the motives that prompted the Justice Department to wantonness its case.
“Everything present smacks of a bargain: dismissal of the indictment successful speech for migration argumentation concessions,” Ho wrote successful his decision.
Since that controversy, relations betwixt Trump and Adams person grown strained, peculiarly successful the aftermath of arguable migration arrests astatine New York City courthouses.
But Trump has remained vocal successful his absorption to Mamdani, Adams’s starring rival successful the 2025 mayoral race.
“ We person a communist moving for the politician of New York, and I privation him well,” Trump said connected August 13, referring to Mamdani. “I whitethorn person to woody with him.”
English (US) ·