From Newsgroup: nyc.politics
A chief of staff to former New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been
charged with accepting more than $100,000 in bribes to steer a city
contract for emergency housing for migrants to a Queens hotel, according
a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday.
The indictment lodges multiple charges of bribery, wire fraud, money
laundering and other crimes against Frank Carone, along with his brother Anthony Carone as well as a Queens hotel owner Yan Po Zhu and Crystal
Chen, an employee of the hotel.
Each pleaded not guilty in federal court in Brooklyn Wednesday
afternoon. Frank Carone was released on $2 million bail, while Zhu was
released on $8 million bail.
Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of
New York said Frank Carone, in his capacity as AdamsrCO chief of staff, accepted a series of bribes from Zhu and Chen in order to steer a
multimillion dollar shelter contract to their hotel.
The contract was awarded as a result of the migrant crisis in 2022 in
which southern state governors were sending undocumented people to New
York by bus.
Frank Carone played a key role in AdamsrCO campaign for mayor in 2021 and served as AdamsrCO chief of staff in 2022. In 2023, he formed a political consulting firm. He also was a one-time lawyer for the Brooklyn
Democratic Party.
Frank CaronerCOs lawyer, Arthur Aidala, called the indictment rCLweakrCY and rCLbased on purely circumstantial evidence thatrCOs not worth the paper upon which it is printed.rCY
rCLTodayrCOs indictment is a sad day for our criminal justice system,rCY
Aidala said in a statement. rCLIt epitomizes the government first finding
a target and then spending three years and enormous taxpayer resources
to find a crime.rCY
In a separate statement, Todd Shapiro, a spokesperson for Adams, said
Frank Carone rCLdedicated decades of his life to public service, the legal profession, and helping countless individuals, businesses, and
charitable organizations throughout New York.rCY
rCLThis is an ongoing legal matter, and my prayers are with his family,rCY Shapiro's statement said.
It was not immediately clear if Anthony Carone, Zhu, and Chen had
lawyers who could respond to the allegations.
In total, Frank Carone was paid around $120,000 by Zhu and Che for the emergency shelter contract, prosecutors said. The money was passed
through a law firm owned by his brother, Anthony Carone, according to
the indictment.
The cityrCOs Social Services Department had initially rejected the hotelrCOs application to house migrants due to growing resistance to the high
number of shelters already operating in the neighborhood, the indictment
said.
Carone then interceded on the hotelrCOs behalf, prosecutors allege. In one according to the indictment.
The Carones and Zhu socialized frequently and attended gatherings at
ZhurCOs Long Island home, the indictment said.
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/new-york-city/eric-adams-adviser-frank-carone- arrested-fbi-bribery/6517419/
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