NEW YORK (news agencies) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been indicted by a grand jury on federal criminal charges, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The indictment detailing the charges against Adams, a Democrat, was still sealed late Wednesday, according to the people, who spoke with media on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan declined to comment. The indictment was first reported by The New York Times.
“I always knew that If I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Adams said in a statement that implied he hadn’t been informed of the indictment. “If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
It was not immediately clear when the charges would be made public or when Adams might have to appear in court.
The indictment marks a stunning fall for Adams, a former police captain who won election nearly three years ago to become the second Black mayor of the nation’s largest city on a platform that promised a law-and-order approach to reducing crime.
For much of the last year, Adams has faced growing legal peril, with multiple federal investigations into top advisers producing a drumbeat of subpoenas, searches and high-level departures that has thrust City Hall into crisis.
He had repeatedly said he wasn’t aware of any wrongdoing and vowed as recently as Wednesday afternoon to stay in office.
Adams is the first mayor in New York City history to be indicted while in office. If he were to resign, he would be replaced by the city’s public advocate, Jumaane Williams, who would then schedule a special election.
Gov. Kathy Hochul has the power to remove Adams from office. Hochul’s office did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday night.
Hours before the charges were announced, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called on Adams to resign, the first nationally prominent Democrat to do so. She cited the federal criminal investigations into the mayor’s administration and a string of unexpected departures of top city officials.
“I do not see how Mayor Adams can continue governing New York City,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on the social platform X.
Adams reacted with scorn, dismissing Ocasio-Cortez as self-righteous.
The federal investigations into Adams administration first emerged publicly on Nov. 2, 2023, when FBI agents conducted an early morning raid on the Brooklyn home of Adams’ chief fundraiser, Brianna Suggs.
At the time, Adams insisted he followed the law and said he would be “shocked” if anyone on his campaign had acted illegally. “I cannot tell you how much I start the day with telling my team we’ve got to follow the law,” he told reporters at the time.
Days later, FBI agents seized the mayor’s phones and iPad as he was leaving an event in Manhattan. The interaction was disclosed several days later by the mayor’s attorney.
Then on Sept. 4, federal investigators seized electronic devices from the city’s police commissioner, schools chancellor, deputy mayor of public safety, first deputy mayor and other trusted confidantes of Adams both in and out of City Hall.
Federal prosecutors declined to discuss the investigations but people familiar with elements of the cases described multiple, separate inquiries involving senior Adams aides, relatives of those aides, campaign fundraising and possible influence peddling of the police and fire departments.
A week after the searches, Police Commissioner Edward Caban announced his resignation, telling officers that he didn’t want the investigations “to create a distraction.” About two weeks later, Schools Chancellor David Banks announced that he would retire at the end of the year.
Adams himself insisted he would keep doing the city’s business and allow the investigations to run their course.
