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AGENCY TESTIMONY
Notable investigations and prosecutions in 2024
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ยท
4 min
Commissioner Strauber outlines several significant investigations and prosecutions conducted by DOI in 2024, highlighting cases involving high-ranking officials and large-scale fraud.
- Arrest of two former high-ranking fire department officials on bribery charges
- Indictment of Mayor Adams on bribery and campaign finance charges (case status pending)
- Arrest of a former city hall official on witness tampering charges
- Indictment of the mayor's former chief adviser for monetizing her government position
- Arrests of 70 current and former NYCHA employees for accepting bribes from vendors
- Indictment of a company and its employees for operating a sham safety training school
Jocelyn E. Strauber
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Last year, DOI and our law enforcement partners announced notable complex investigations leading to significant criminal prosecutions targeting official pay to play schemes and other misconduct, including the arrest of two former high ranking fire department officials on bribery and related charges for soliciting and accepting tens of thousands of dollars in payments in exchange for providing preferential treatment to certain individuals and companies with matters pending before the Bureau of Fire Prevention.
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Both defendants have plead guilty and no longer work for New York City.
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The indictment of mayor Adams on bribery and campaign finance charges for allegedly obtaining illegal campaign contributions and luxury travel through the city government positions he has held for nearly a decade.
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As you know, the federal district judge assigned to the case is currently considering the Department of Justice's motion to dismiss the charges charges on grounds unrelated to the strength of the case or the conduct of the investigation.
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The arrest of a former city hall official on witness tampering and destruction of evidence charges in connection with the investigation of alleged illegal campaign contributions to the mayor.
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That case remains pending.
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The indictment of the mayor's former chief adviser for monetizing her government position and influence to benefit herself and her family.
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The arrests 70 current and former employees of the New York City Housing Authority for accepting cash payments from vendors in exchange for awarding NYCHA contracts, driving up the cost of services and depriving NYCHA residents of valuable resources.
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To date, 64 of the 70 defendants have been convicted.
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Cases against six defendants remain pending.
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DOI made 14 recommendations to NYCHA as a result of this investigation, all of which have been implemented.
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The indictment of a company and six of its executives and employees for operating a sham safety training school had issued safety certificates and cards to approximately 20,000 students.
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19 individuals also were charged with acting as brokers by connecting individuals seeking safety certification to the school.
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14 of the defendants have pled guilty and an additional defendant was convicted after trial.
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In light of the findings in this investigation, DOI issued a number of recommendations to the city department of buildings to improve its oversight of the construction site safety training requirements mandated by local law.
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DOI's investigations over the last year also focused on theft of city funds as well as misconduct impacting some of the city's most vulnerable residents resulting in, for example, the guilty plea of a former fiscal officer who stole nearly 2,300,000.0 from the city funded nonprofit where she worked and spent the funds on home remodeling, landscaping, and luxury goods.
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A forty two month prison sentence for a Florida woman who defrauded at least a 20 low income city residents out of nearly 50,000 in benefits from the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
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The indictment of a landlord and corporate entities he controlled for maintaining uninhabitable conditions in his rent regulated properties to induce tenants to vacate so that he could sell the properties for profit and for filing false documents with city agencies to conceal ownership of those buildings and evade responsibility for treatment of his tenants.
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DOI issued four recommendations to the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development to strengthen the city's response to landlords who ently neglect their properties.
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Another key aspect of our mission is to provide public transparency with respect to the operations, practices, and conduct of city government.
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We do this in part through our public reports.
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In 2024, DOI published 15 reports that explored important issues including the misuse of city issued parking placards, compliance and governance risks at 51 city funded nonprofits that operate city homeless shelters, safety, disciplinary, and staffing challenges at ACS's juvenile detention facilities, and a review of the NYPD's community response team that found insufficient public information about the unit and an absence of written policies and procedures governing its operations.
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These reports shed light on issues of significance to city government by detailing our factual findings and our recommendations for critical policy and procedural change.