(NewsNation) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams appeared in court Wednesday after being indicted on bribery and fraud charges, where prosecutors revealed they may be filing more charges against the mayor. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In court, Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagan Scotten told Judge Dale Ho that it is “quite likely” prosecutors will seek a superseding indictment and that it is “likely” additional defendants will be charged and “possible” that more charges will be brought against Adams.
“There are several related investigations here,” Scotten told the judge.
Scotten said some of the evidence includes Turkish Airlines records that show Adams either didn’t pay for flights or that he paid a few hundred dollars for an economy class ticket “to create the illusion that he was paying his way” when he was really receiving free upgrades worth several thousand dollars.
Adams did not take questions from reporters as he entered the courtroom, nor did he take questions on the charges at a public safety news conference immediately following his appearance.
His attorney, Alex Spiro, asked for a trial date to be set for March. The trial is set to take about four weeks and the March date would ensure it happened before ballot deadlines for the mayoral election next June. Prosecutors did not object to the request.
Ho declined to set a date but said he would consider the requests.
Adams is alleged to have accepted around $100,000 worth of flights, hotel stays, meals and entertainment that were given to him for free or at a steep discount. Those are said to have occurred on international trips, most of which Adams took before he was elected mayor.
Prosecutors say a senior Turkish diplomatic official and Turkish businesspeople arranged the bribes, hoping to gain influence with Adams.
The indictment also accused Adams of receiving illegal campaign donations from foreign sources who aren’t allowed to contribute to U.S. political candidates.
In exchange, prosecutors say Adams helped Turkey open a new diplomatic facility in the city, overriding concerns from the fire department about the building’s ability to pass safety inspections.
Adams has denied the allegations and said the trips and his work on the building were both routine actions and were not improper. He has also suggested prosecutors improperly leaked information to the media and is asking the judge to investigate.
The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs also denied any efforts to meddle in U.S. politics.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
