The Generation, Yeat 01, Issue 11
On the heels of winning the city’s 2021 Democratic mayoral primary, Eric Adams called up the head of the FDNY and urged him to clear the way for the Turkish government to open its gleaming new consulate in Manhattan despite safety concerns at the high-rise building, Daily News says, a source familiar with the matter confirmed on Monday.
The source, who was not authorized to discuss the matter with the press and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Adams’ outreach to then-FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro in late summer 2021 is being scrutinized by federal investigators as part of a public corruption probe into whether the mayor’s campaign reportedly conspired with the Turkish government to funnel illegal foreign cash into the campaign’s coffers via straw donors.
As part of the probe, FBI agents seized Adams’ electronic devices last week and raided the Brooklyn home of his top campaign fundraiser before that.
In summer 2021, the opening of the consulate had been held up due to city inspectors finding that the building’s glass panels were prone to breaking, causing safety hazards, city records show.
In one instance, inspectors found that four glass panels had broken and crashed onto the sidewalk below on First Avenue, records show. According to the New York Times, which first reported Adams’ outreach to Nigro, there were also problems with the building’s fire safety system.
After Adams’ intervention, the building, which cost $300 million to construct, was able to open in September 2021.
Adams has not been formally accused of any wrongdoing as part of the FBI investigation, and neither has anyone connected with his campaign.
Asked about why Adams intervened in the consulate matter, his campaign provided a statement from the mayor suggesting that corresponding with city government agencies was part of his job as Brooklyn borough president.
Source: New York Daily News
