A former aide to outgoing New York Mayor Eric Adams was sentenced Tuesday to 3 years’ probation, together with a 12 months of house confinement, for soliciting unlawful marketing campaign contributions for Adams.
However as a federal choose introduced the sentence for Mohamed Bahi, a liaison to town’s Muslim communities, he additionally addressed the “elephant within the room” — that Adams’ personal corruption fees had been erased via a exceptional intervention by the Trump administration.
“There’s a notable absence right here of the particular person on the apex of the pyramid,” stated the choose, Dale E. Ho, who additionally presided over Adams’ since-dismissed case. “It’s exhausting to flee the impression that Mr. Bahi, as his counsel put it, is left right here holding the bag.”
Bahi, 41, had pleaded responsible to serving to solicit unlawful donations from staff of a Brooklyn development firm throughout Dec. 2020 fundraiser for Adams’ first mayoral marketing campaign.
That case grew out of a sweeping corruption investigation into Adams and his marketing campaign, which led to the mayor’s indictment in Sept. 2024 on bribery and marketing campaign finance offenses. Earlier this 12 months, the Justice Division moved to dismiss the case towards Adams, arguing it was impeding his cooperation with President Donald Trump’s immigration priorities.
The extraordinary growth prompted protests and resignations from a number of prime prosecutors, together with the interim U.S. legal professional in Manhattan, who accused Adams of hanging a quid professional quo cope with Trump.
Adams has denied wrongdoing, insisting that the fees had been political payback for his criticism of President Joe Biden’s immigration coverage. He ran for re-election this 12 months as an impartial, however ended his marketing campaign early.
Within the months because the dismissal, prosecutors have continued their instances towards these charged in schemes linked to the mayor’s 2021 marketing campaign, together with a Brooklyn development magnate who labored with a Turkish authorities official to funnel unlawful donations to Adams.
An legal professional for Bahi, Derek Adams, addressed these uncommon circumstances Tuesday, accusing federal prosecutors of sparing “these in positions of energy.”
“The sentiment of the general public,” he added, was that his shopper was left “holding the bag” whereas Adams obtained off.
When Ho requested the federal government how he ought to weigh the truth that Adams was not going through fees, the prosecutor, Robert Sobelman, demurred, saying he might solely focus on the case towards Bahi.
For his half, Bahi advised the choose he had accepted “full accountability for my actions” and was centered on rebuilding belief. “The integrity of elections is without doubt one of the most sacred rights we’ve, and I violated that,” he stated via tears.
Bahi beforehand stated he was “instructed” by one other Adams volunteer to arrange the straw donation scheme, which allowed the marketing campaign to gather bigger contributions via town’s beneficiant matching funds program.
Prosecutors additionally stated Bahi deleted Sign, an encrypted messaging app, from his telephone after studying that federal brokers had been exterior his house. They’d urged the choose to condemn him to at least one 12 months in jail.
Bahi embraced his dozens of supporters within the courtroom after studying that he would keep away from jail time. His confinement will enable him to go away house for work and to attend non secular providers, amongst different causes.
“I’m feeling content material that this complete ordeal is over,” he advised reporters as he left the courtroom. “Spending time with my household for a 12 months might be the perfect factor I can do.”
