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How Brazen Can A Bribe-Taking Albany Assemblyman Get?
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 5, 2013
Modified Apr 5, 2013
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By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 5, 2013
Modified Apr 5, 2013
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Bronx Assemblyman Nelson Castro wore a wire for four years to help investigators build a case against another Bronx Assemblyman. Prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Bronx Assemblyman Eric Stevenson yesterday, accusing him of accepting bribes in excess of $20,000 in exchange for pushing legislation to help some adult day care centers rub out the competition. The indictment revealed that Stevenson was undone by one of his Democratic colleagues, who has now been identified as Assemblyman Castro.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara says that Castro wore the wire repeatedly over the course of the investigation in exchange for immunity from prosecution on a prior perjury allegation. Castro and another mole, former Assembly candidate Sigfredo Gonzalez, wore wires around Stevenson and other politicians. According to the indictment, Stevenson was caught on tape taking bribes from four men involved in the adult day care business.
The meetings with the alleged co-conspirators took place outside a Bronx steakhouse, in cars, and in a hotel bathroom. “I just need you to tell me what they want; we prepare the bill... you can write down the language, basically what you want,” Stevenson allegedly told one of the men who was bribing him. The legislation was drafted in February, but Stevenson, 46, had not yet found a co-sponsor.
Another classic Stevenson comment caught on tape allegedly features the Assemblyman bragging that even if he does get caught, the punishment will be a slap on the wrist. “Bottom line... if half of the people up here in Albany was ever caught for what they do... they would probably be in jail, so who are they bullshitting? Look at this guy [former Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno, he] got off on appeal and never went back. They had him for a million. Look at [former state Sen. Carl] Kruger . . . They got him in the easiest federal penitentiary you could ever be in."
Stevenson was arrested yesterday morning and charged with bribery and corruption; he faces 35 years in prison. Outside court, he suggested that he was being unfairly persecuted because of his political views. "I’ve been really outspoken for a lot of issues,” Stevenson told reporters. When asked which ones, he said, “Stop-and-frisk and all those things."
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said Stevenson’s alleged actions "cannot be tolerated. I am encouraging him to resign." Castro resigned late yesterday afternoon. State Senator Malcolm Smith and City Councilman Dan Halloran were also arrested on corruption charges earlier this week.
"The charges we unsealed demonstrate once again the ‘show me the money culture’ seems to pervade every level of New York government,” Bharara said yesterday. “The criminal complaint describes an unappetizing smorgasbord of graft and greed involving six officials who together built a corridor of corruption stretching from Queens and the Bronx to Rockland County and all the way up to Albany. If proven, it represents an especially breathtaking bit of corruption, even by Albany standards."
Tagged
Albany
bribery
corruption
eric stevenson
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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