NYC Mayor Eric Adams pleads not guilty to federal corruption charges, leaves courtroom with a smile

Beleaguered New York City Mayor Eric Adams has pleaded not guilty after he was indicted on federal criminal charges. The mayor arrived at a court in Manhattan on Friday morning, hours before he was scheduled for the arraignment proceedings. This is the first time a sitting NYC mayor is being indicted.

Adams was accused of accepting illegal campaign contributions and free overseas trips from foreign actors who were allegedly trying to seek influence in the United States. “I am not guilty, your honour,” Adams said, looking solemnly at Judge Katharine Parker, The Guardian reported.

Following the proceedings, the New York mayor was released on the condition that he do not contact any witnesses or any people involved in the indictment. As per the conditions laid out by the court, Adams is allowed to speak with members of his family and staff but he is not allowed to discuss anything related to the allegations.

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The court warned that the Democratic mayor could face additional charges and punishment if he were to engage in witness tampering or intimidation. The 64-year-old is due to be back in court on Wednesday.

Adams left the courtroom with smile

According to the Associated Press,  Adams left the courtroom without making any comments on the case and with just a smile. He smiled at a court officer but ignored the rows of reporters he passed on his way out. As per the report, some of the onlookers also carried banners that read “Free Eric” and “Lock him up”.

“This isn’t even a real case. This is the airline upgrade corruption case,” Adams lawyer Alex Shapiro told reporters. During the proceedings, Adams reportedly sat for about 18 minutes. The indictment was unsealed on Thursday, a day before Adam’s arraignment proceedings.

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As per the declassified document, US prosecutors alleged that the NYC mayor “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”.

The charges hurled against him included conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to receive campaign contributions by foreign nationals, wire fraud, and solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national. The complaint focuses on Adam’s trip to Turkey, India and Ghana on Turkish Airlines, sometimes staying in luxury hotels, that as an elected official he should have disclosed to the government.

It also deal with campaign contributions made by Trukish officials through a system of “straw donors”. “Adams did not disclose the travel benefits he had obtained in annual financial disclosures he was required to file as a New York City employee”, the government alleged in the indictment.

“Sometimes, Adams agreed to pay a nominal fee to create the appearance of having paid for travel that was in fact heavily discounted,” the unsealed document further reads. Meanwhile, local reports suggested that investigators had raided the home of Adams’s chief adviser, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, on Friday and confiscated electronic devices.

With inputs from agencies.