New York City Mayor Eric Adams is in some serious hot water

New York City Mayor Eric Adams is in a lot of trouble. You might have heard that the big boss of the Big Apple was facing a major corruption investigation, and he has now been indicted on some serious charges. So what’s going on?

According to NBC News, Adams has faced a big corruption investigation that has been going on for the better part of a year. Things started to go very wrong for Adams back in November 2023 when the FBI seized some of his electronic devices.

November 2023 was a particularly bad month for Adams because it was also when the New York Times ran a story that could explain why the NYC mayor was just indicted: it looks like he was involved in a beneficial quid pro quo relationship with Turkish government officials. 

The New York Times reported that Adams allegedly “successfully pressed city officials to allow the opening of a Manhattan high-rise housing the Turkish Consulate General.” However, that wasn’t the only thing he was accused of at the time. 

Adams had allegedly worked with Turkish officials to funnel money into his campaign coffers during his 2021 mayoral run, but he wasn’t charged at the time. However, he has now been indicted on five federal charges relating to this situation. 

According to Vox, the charges Adams faces are related to his mayoral campaign and they allege that the NYC mayor “knowingly accepted illegal donations facilitated by a Turkish government official, and favors” as part of a quid pro quo deal relationship. 

Adams faces one count of “conspiracy to commit wire fraud, solicit foreign contributions, and accept bribes” according to Vox, which reported Adams allegedly set up an illegal system that accepted donations for his mayoral campaign.

The illegal system Adams set up also allowed him to allegedly accept luxury plane tickets and other perks from the Turkish government and Turkish prominent individuals The charge also alleges Adams helped the Turkish consulate get around New York regulations. 

Adams also faces one count of wire fraud, tied to the illegal donations system he set up, and two counts of solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national since he knowingly accepted donations from a foreign citizen, which public officials are barred from doing. 

The final charge Adams faces is one count of bribery, which Vox reported was related to the travel benefits that he received from the Turkish government in exchange for helping relax the regulatory requirements facing the construction of the Turkish consulate. 

Adams, who is a former New York police captain and long-standing public official who was a New York State Senator and the 18th Borough President of Brooklyn, hasn’t been very magnanimous about the situation following his indictment. 

After the unsealing of his case and his federal indictments, Adams said in a video statement: “I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became.”

"If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit,” Adams added according to NBC News. 

On September 27th, Adams appeared in court where he pleaded not guilty according to several news agencies, including the Associated Press. “I am not guilty, your honor,” he told the judge before being released by the court. 

Adams was released under the condition that he was not allowed to contact any of the witnesses or people described in the indictment according to the Associated Press, though he is allowed to talk to his staff and relatives if it excludes anything that has to do with the allegations against him. 

Whether or not Adams will step down as mayor has yet to be seen, but several people have called for him to leave office, and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul does have the power to remove Adams, something Politico reported her team has discussed internally.  

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