New York, Feb 11 In a move to clear up some of the politically controversial prosecutions, US President Donald Trump has moved to drop a case against New York’s mayor Eric Adams.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove ordered the federal prosecutors in the city on Monday to drop the case of alleged corruption against Adams pointing out that the charges were filed after he criticised President Joe Biden’s immigration policy.
Bove cited Trump’s order “Ending the Weaponisation of the Federal Government” as a factor in his instruction to the prosecutor.
Damian Williams, the Biden-appointed federal prosecutor who brought the charges against the mayor, has resigned with the change in administration and an acting prosecutor is running the office.
Williams was also the prosecutor behind the case filed against a former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) officer Vikas Yadav and another Indian, Nikhil Gupta, accusing them of plotting to have Khalistani leader Gurpatwant Pannun killed.
Adams is a Democrat like Biden, but ran afoul of him with his criticism..
Although Adams has not switched parties, he hasn’t criticised Trump either and has met with him and got an invitation to his inauguration,
The main corruption charge against Adams was that he pressured the fire department to certify a Turkish Consulate building in return for favours.
At the time of the alleged incident, Adams was not yet the mayor and was an official in one of the boroughs unconnected to the site of the building.
The prosecutors said that a favour received was an upgrade on a Turkish Airlines flight.
During his election campaign, Trump said that the Biden administration and Democratic Party prosecutors were weaponing the legal system against him and others.
He expressed sympathy for Adams, considering him a fellow victim.
When the Biden administration loosened border security, several million illegal migrants poured into the US and over 210,000 came to New York straining the city’s resources.
As Adams was headed to Washington to lead a delegation of other mayors affected by the migrant influx to raise the issue, federal officials raided his aide’s house forcing him to drop out and return home.
That was followed by the prosecution of Adams himself.
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