Eric Adams becomes first sitting NYC mayor indicted in historic federal probe — claims feds persecuting him over migrant crisis
Mayor Eric Adams has been indicted by a grand jury on charges connected to a federal probe, sources told The Post — as the defiant chief executive claimed he was being persecuted by the federal government for speaking out about the city’s migrant crisis.
The historic indictment — the first for a sitting modern New York City mayor — is expected to be unsealed Thursday by US Attorney Damian Williams, according to the sources. The news was first reported by the New York Times.
Adams will surrender to authorities early next week, sources said.
Details about the exact accusations remained unclear, but they are believed to be connected to allegations of the Turkish government illegally funneling money into his mayoral campaign in exchange for approval of the Turkish Consulate in Manhattan, according to sources.
Sources said the mayor is facing a charge of acting as an unregistered foreign agent after accepting donations from foreign entities.
“I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Adams said in a statement to The Post.
“If I am charged, I am innocent, and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
In a video statement released later, Adams said he wouldn’t step down and pledged to “fight these injustices with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
“I will request an immediate trial so that New Yorkers can hear the truth. New Yorkers know my story. They know where I come from. I have been fighting injustice my entire life,” he continued.
“That fight has continued as your mayor. Despite our pleas, when the federal government did nothing as its broken immigration policies overloaded our shelter system with no relief, I put the people of New York before party and politics.”
A rep for the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.
Sources told The Post that two others — Adams’ top campaign fundraiser Brianna Suggs and his director of Asian affairs, Winnie Greco — are expected to be named in the indictment.
At least three others are also expected to be charged, though The Post could not immediately confirm their identities.
Following news of the indictment, cops set up barriers outside Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s home, and forced reporters back from the house.
At about 11:50 p.m., Adams’ ex-chief of staff Frank Carone emerged from the property. When asked by reporters whether Adams was distracted by the legal trouble, Carone replied, “Not at all.”
Then about a half-hour later, three black SUVs were seen leaving the mansion with their emergency lights flashing.
Eric Adams indicted: Live updates after NYC mayor hit with indictment
It’s uncertain how the indictment is related to a sweeping set of Sept. 4 raids that targeted several high-profile Adams administration officials, which sent City Hall into a weeks-long tailspin as news reports emerged of investigations focused on alleged corruption among the mayor’s inner circle.
By Wednesday morning, word had spread that a “senior” City Hall official soon would be indicted, sending staff into a panic throughout the day, insiders said.
The indictment’s unveiling will come after federal prosecutors recently demanded City Hall cough up all communications between the Adams administration, Turkey and five other foreign countries amid the long-running probe.
Adams’ 2021 campaign had previously been served with subpoenas for information on its campaign donations — specifically those that had ties to Turkey, sources told The Post.
Sprawling records requests then came in a July batch of subpoenas seeking details on all interactions between admin officials and Israel, China, Qatar, South Korea and Uzbekistan, the sources added.
Adams, City Hall and his election committee were also hit with grand jury subpoenas that same month — with the feds obtaining text messages, documents and other communications and materials.
Adams has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration’s soft immigration policies as the Big Apple was flooded with more than 250,000 migrants since 2022, accusing the federal government of leaving New York to fend for itself.
“The national government has turned its back on New York City,” he said in early 2023.
He also said the White House needed to appoint a person who would be dedicated to a “decompression strategy” at the border.
The migrant crisis is expected to cost the city upward of $12 billion by 2026 and Adams has repeatedly pleaded for Washington to provide more funds to Gotham.
“I am lost. I am confused on this topic on why we still, almost 20 months later, we’re still talking about this issue and it has inundated the city,” Adams told Fox 5 in December 2023.
The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York had remained tight-lipped about the probe ever since it burst into view last November with a dramatic raid on top Adams fundraiser Brianna Suggs’ Brooklyn home.
The raid — which sought evidence of straw donor kickbacks by the Turkish government and the Williamsburg-based construction company KSK Construction Group into Adams’ mayoral campaign — prompted Hizzoner to scurry back from a much-publicized White House meeting on the migrant crisis.
Follow the latest on the FBI raids of Adams administration officials
The feds subsequently raided the homes of City Hall staffer Rana Abbasova and Cenk Ocal, a former Turkish Airlines executive who worked on Adams’ transition team.
A week later, Adams had his own phones and iPad seized by FBI agents on the streets of Manhattan.
Meanwhile, another aide, Winnie Greco, had her Bronx home raided by FBI agents in February, though it wasn’t clear at the time whether it was tied to the Turkey probe.
Hizzoner has long denied any wrongdoing.
“It takes a great deal of discipline to not say something when you know you’ve done nothing wrong,” Adams said in August when asked about the mayoral campaign investigation.
The indictment marks the first time a New York City mayor has faced charges in 170 years, according to historical research done by The City.
All recent mayors from David Dinkins to Bill de Blasio have faced some type of corruption investigation, but all those probes ended with, at worst, lower-level aides being slapped with charges.
Former Mayor Jimmy Walker famously resigned in 1932 while under investigation, but he was never charged.
The bombshell indictment will come amid a spate of other federal investigations targeting City Hall and Big Apple officials that came to light in a stunning series of raids on Hizzoner’s top lieutenants, closest political allies and most trusted aides of late.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are behind many of the probes but — like the mayoral campaign investigation — have remained tight-lipped about the aims, potential charges and how the probes might entwine.
No one, to date, has been charged or accused of any wrongdoing in the other investigations.
Additional reporting by Ben Kochman, David Propper and Marie Pohl
