NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams was hit with a raft of fedearl corruption charges Thursday accusing him of accepting thousands of dollars in illegal campaign donations from Turkish officials that cost city taxpayers upwards of $10 million in public matching funds. The massive indictment also alleges Adams accepted $100,000 in lavish trips and hotel stays — all paid by Turkish officials who thought Adams’ rising political career would lead the former NYPD cop to the White House. “These upgrades and freebies were not part of some frequent flyer or loyalty program,” Manhattan U.
S. Attorney Damian Williams said at a Thursday press conference unveiling the charges. The grandiose gifts were intended to buy a “New York City politician on the rise,” Williams said.
“These are bright red lines and we allege that the mayor crossed them again and again for years.” Adams is facing 40 years in prison after being charged with bribery, campaign finance, wire fraud and conspiracy offenses, federal officials said. The charges stem from an ongoing investigation by the Manhattan U.
S. Attorney’s Office that has scrutinized allegations Turkey’s government funneled illegal donations into Adams’ 2021 campaign coffers. Earlier this month, it was revealed the probe is also looking at communications between Adams and the governments of five other foreign countries.
In the indictment, federal investigators described a scheme that spanned “nearly a decade,” starting when Adams bec.