Adams’ friend pleads guilty in straw donor scheme involving New York City mayor’s 2021 campaign

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A longtime friend of New York City Mayor Eric Adams pleaded guilty on Monday to expenses associated to a scheme to acquire tens of 1000’s in funds from the Democrat’s 2021 campaign. 

Dwayne Montgomery, a former NYPD inspector, pleaded guilty to the alleged straw donor scheme, New York Daily News reported, citing a Manhattan District Attorney’s Office spokesperson. 

Though particulars of the plea settlement weren’t instantly accessible, Adams was requested about Montgomery’s guilty plea throughout an unrelated press convention Monday. 

“Dealing with the question around Dwayne Montgomery, the DA is handling that case,” Adams stated, referring to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.  

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Adams at media availabilty

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks throughout media availability at City Hall on Jan. 2, 2024. Adams has not been accused of wrongdoing in a straw donor investigation by the Manhattan district legal professional. (Barry Williams for New York Daily News/Tribune News Service by way of Getty Images)

“I think the DA clearly reported that there was nothing our campaign did that was a part of what was done wrong. And I say let the DA handle this issue, situation.”

Adams asserted a “level of scrutiny” his campaign staffers took in calling between 16,000-17,000 donors, informing them each verbally and in writing that contributions “had to be your money.” 

“It was in writing. People had to read it before they signed the donor form or after contributing online. Then I added an additional layer of spending of thousands of dollars on a compliance attorney who matched signatures, who matched information, and made sure things were done with a level of scrutiny that deserved,” Adams defined. “And we returned back tens of thousands of donations that did not follow that muster. And so the campaign did its job. We did the review that we’re supposed to review. And I’ve always told you from the beginning, I’m confident that I know we did the internal scrutiny we’re supposed to do.” 

The mayor has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection to the Manhattan district legal professional’s probe. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Bragg’s workplace for touch upon Monday concerning Montgomery’s plea. 

Two of Montgomery’s co-defendants, brothers Shahid and Yahya Mushtaq, pleaded guilty in October to taking part in the scheme. As a part of their settlement, the Mushtaqs would cooperate with Bragg’s investigators as their investigation in the scheme remained ongoing, in response to the Daily News. 

Other co-defendants in the case are Shamsuddin Riza, Millicent Redick, Ronald Peek, and Ecosafety Consultants, Inc. 

Court paperwork allege that the co-defendants engaged with one another between August 2020 and November 2021 to fraudulently receive tens of 1000’s of {dollars} in matching funds for Adams’ 2021 New York City mayoral campaign by submitting falsified campaign contribution types to the New York City Campaign Finance Board. 

Manhattan district attorney alvin bragg

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s workplace is investigating an alleged straw donor campaign scheme involving Eric Adams’ 2021 mayoral campaign. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket by way of Getty Images)

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Prosecutors alleged it was a part of the conspiracy for Montgomery, Riza, Peek and others to supply funds for and to reimburse straw donors, to coordinate the campaign contributions of the straw donors by means of fundraiser occasions, and to instruct different conspirators on methods to construction and disguise straw donor contributions to keep away from detection. 

Meanwhile, Adams has constructed a hefty struggle chest over the previous a number of months amid reviews he’s on the heart of an ongoing FBI investigation. 

Adams, who has clashed with the White House on President Biden’s immigration insurance policies as New York City grapples with the inflow of greater than tens of 1000’s of migrants from the southern border, has to date not been publicly accused of any wrongdoing because the FBI continues its investigation into alleged corruption at City Hall to profit the Turkish authorities. 

Eric Adams at Cipriani

Mayor Eric Adams attends Police Commissioner Edward Caban’s “State of the New York Police Department” tackle on Jan. 31, 2024. Adams has denied any wrongdoing amid corruption probes. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket by way of Getty Images)

In an announcement in January, Adams’ longtime campaign compliance legal professional confirmed that, “The Eric Adams Legal Defense Trust has drawn strong support in a short amount of time, raising more than $650,000 since it was formed just two months ago,” Fox News Digital beforehand reported. 

The mayor began the authorized protection belief in mid-November after the FBI searched the house of Adams’ chief campaign fundraiser, 25-year-old Brianna Suggs. Federal brokers seized two laptop computer computer systems, three iPhones and a manila folder labeled “Eric Adams,” in response to the New York Times. 

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The FBI raid prompted Adams to out of the blue return from Washington, D.C., forward of deliberate visits on the White House and Congress associated to the migrant disaster’ affect on the Big Apple. 

The bureau is probing whether or not Adams’ 2021 campaign conspired with the Turkish authorities and others to funnel cash into its coffers. FBI brokers additionally approached Adams straight after a Manhattan occasion later that month, seizing the mayor’s digital units, together with a minimum of two cellphones and an iPad, in finishing up a search warrant, the Times reported. 

The FBI additionally searched the properties of Rana Abbasova, an aide to Adams at City Hall, and Cenk Öcal, a former Turkish Airlines government who served on the mayor’s 2021 transition group, in response to Daily News.

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