New York City Mayor Eric Adams pleaded not guilty to five counts of federal corruption charges on Friday.
The mayor, who was indicted last week with bribery, wire fraud and conspiracy, appeared in a federal courtroom in lower Manhattan, according to The City news agency. He is the first sitting city mayor to face criminal charges while in office.
Adams was released without having to surrender his passport but was instructed not to discuss the charges or the case with staffers or family, and not to intimidate any potential witnesses, they news outlet reported.
He is due back in court on Wednesday, Oct. 2.
Meanwhile, federal officials served Ingrid Lewis-Martin, one of mayor's closest aides, with a subpoena as soon as she landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport after returning from a vacation in Japan, The City also reported.
Lewis-Martin handed over her phones to representatives from the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, the news outlet reported. Her home on Troy Avenue in Brooklyn was also served with a federal search warrant and raided by FBI agents and the city's Department of Investigations.
In other related news, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright married David Banks, the outgoing Chancellor of Public Schools, over the weekend, the New York Times reported. The two, who live together in Manhattan, also had their phone seized by federal officials earlier this month.
