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.”
In a speech recorded at his official residence, Adams acknowledged that some New Yorkers would question his ability to manage the city while he fights the charges, but he vowed to stay in office.
“I have been facing these lies for months … yet the city has continued to improve,” Adams said. “Make no mistake. You elected me to lead this city and lead it I will.”
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 turn 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. In the last two weeks alone, the police chief who oversees the country’s largest police force and the schools chancellor who is in charge of the nation’s biggest school district both announced their resignations.
He had repeatedly said he wasn’t aware of any wrongdoing and vowed as recently as Wednesday afternoon to stay in office.
Adams, who is expecting a tough primary election next year, faced immediate calls to resign from many of his declared or expected Democratic challengers.
Brad Lander, the city’s comptroller, said the indictment marked “a sad day for New Yorkers.” Sen. Zellnor Myrie also called the indictment “sad” and added that it was “especially painful for so many Black New Yorkers who put our hope and faith in this Mayor.”
Scott Stringer, a former city comptroller who is expected to run against Adams, said: “The mayor needs to resign for the good of the city.”
“Eric Adams is indicted. There is simply zero chance that the wheels of government will move forward from this full steam ahead. Instead, we are left with a broken down trainwreck of a municipal government,” Stringer said.
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 the 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.
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