Ingrid Lewis-Martin on the Manhattan Felony Courthouse in December 2024 after she was booked on what could be the primary of two corruption indictments.
Picture by Lloyd Mitchell
Manhattan District Legal professional Alvin Bragg on Thursday hit Mayor Eric Adams’ former chief adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin with a slew of contemporary corruption costs, accusing her and her son of accepting $75,000 value of advantages in change for official favors.
Bragg’s workplace — together with the town Division of Investigation — charged Lewis-Martin, her son Glenn Martin II, in any other case referred to as Suave or Suave Luciano, and 7 others in 4 separate indictments on Aug. 21. Lewis-Martin surrendered early Thursday morning to the Manhattan DA’s workplace at One Hogan Place.
Broadly, Lewis-Martin is accused of utilizing her senior Metropolis Corridor place between 2022 and 2024 to grease the wheels of metropolis authorities — corresponding to steering metropolis contracts to most well-liked distributors and killing a road security undertaking, in change for advantages together with money, the promise of a TV performing function, and hundreds of {dollars} in meals.
She can be accused of overriding the experience of metropolis officers to learn her alleged co-conspirators.
Whereas Mayor Adams himself shouldn’t be implicated within the indictments, they contain how his former closest confidant allegedly leveraging myriad metropolis authorities choices to complement herself and her son. The fees might additional hinder Adams’ already steep uphill reelection battle, during which he has tried to distance himself from a number of previous corruption scandals in his administration, together with his personal now-dismissed federal case.
The fees towards Lewis-Martin embrace 4 counts of fourth-degree conspiracy and 4 counts of second-degree bribe receiving. The brand new costs aren’t related to Lewis-Martin’s already present bribery and conspiracy indictment that was filed late final yr, during which she is accused of allegedly accepting $100,000 in bribes from a pair of Manhattan businessmen to purchase a Porsche for her son.
Martin II is charged with two counts of conspiracy within the fourth diploma and two counts of second-degree bribe receiving.
Metropolis Deputy Commissioner for Actual Property Providers Jesse Hamilton is going through one rely of conspiracy within the fourth diploma and the opposite six defendants — together with developer Tian Ji Li and Gina and Tony Argento, the siblings who run Broadway Levels studio in Brooklyn —are charged with one rely of conspiracy within the fourth diploma and one rely of bribery within the second diploma.
Bragg, in an announcement, stated his workplace alleges that Lewis-Martin “classic bribery conspiracies” that had a “deep and wide-ranging impact” on metropolis authorities.
“As alleged, Lewis-Martin consistently overrode the expertise of public servants so she could line her own pockets,” Bragg stated. “While she allegedly received more than $75,000 in bribes and an appearance on a TV show, every other New Yorker lost out. Hardworking City employees were undermined, businesses and developers who followed the law were pushed aside, and the public was victimized by corruption at the highest levels of government.”
Arthur Aidala, stated on Thursday after her indictment was introduced that “Ingrid Lewis Martin is facing charges classified at the lowest level of felony in our justice system.” He sought to color the brand new costs as politically motivated.
“Her only so-called “offense” was fulfilling her obligation—serving to fellow residents navigate the town’s outdated and infrequently overwhelming forms. At no level did she obtain a single greenback or any private profit for her help,” Aidala added. “Yet, the District Attorney seeks to portray a dedicated and honest public servant as a criminal. This is not justice—it is a distortion of the truth and a troubling example of politically motivated ‘lawfare.’ We will vigorously fight these charges and ensure that the facts prevail.”
Attorneys for Hamilton, and one of many different defendants — Gina Argento — denied any wrongdoing on Thursday. Hamilton’s lawyer didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon Thursday.
It is a creating story; test with amNY.com later for updates.
