New York City Mayor Eric Adams has dismissed allegations that he attempted to strike a deal with the Trump administration to have corruption charges against him dropped in return for supporting the president’s immigration policies.
Speaking on Fox News alongside Trump’s border czar Tom Homan on Friday, Adams described the claims as “silly” and insisted he had committed no crime.
Adams said that Sassoon was accusing him of a serious crime. “It took her three weeks to report … a criminal action? Come on, this is silly,” he said.
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His comments came a day after Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor, Danielle Sassoon, stepped down, alleging that the Justice Department had pressured her to abandon the case against Adams.
What are the charges against Eric Adams?
Adams was indicted last year over claims that he accepted gifts worth more than $100,000 (£75,000) from Turkish nationals in exchange for political favours. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Quid pro quo
In a letter, Sassoon, recently promoted by President Donald Trump, said that Adams’ legal team had met with officials at the Justice Department and had “repeatedly urged what amounted to a quid pro quo, indicating that Adams would be in a position to assist with the Department’s enforcement priorities only if the indictment were dismissed.”
The mayor recently announced his intention to sign an executive order allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents access to Rikers Island, fulfilling a significant request from the Trump administration regarding immigration enforcement.
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On Monday, Trump’s acting deputy attorney general, Emil Bove, instructed Sassoon and New York prosecutors to withdraw the case, arguing that it was hindering Adams’ ability to tackle “illegal immigration and violent crime.”
In her resignation letter to Bove on Thursday, Sassoon warned that dismissing the charges against Adams would create a “breathtaking and dangerous precedent.”
“Because the law does not support a dismissal, and because I am confident that Adams has committed the crimes with which he is charged, I cannot agree to seek a dismissal driven by improper considerations,” she wrote.
Following Sassoon’s resignation, five other Justice Department officials from the corruption unit also stepped down.
Donald Trump and Eric Adam’s closer ties
Since Trump’s victory in the presidential election, Adams, a Democrat, has developed closer ties with the Republican leader. He travelled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida just days before the president took office. Trump has denied any involvement in efforts to have the case against Adams dismissed.
Growing calls for resignation
New York Governor Kathy Hochul voiced concern over the allegations, describing them as “extremely serious and concerning” during an interview with MSNBC on Thursday night.
When asked whether she would consider removing Adams from his position, she stated that she was “consulting with other leaders in government at this time.”
Calls for Adams to step down grew louder on Friday, as further details about the Justice Department’s decision to drop the corruption charges came to light.
(With inputs from agencies)