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Accused conspirator in donation scheme for Mayor Adams' campaign pleads guilty
By
Samantha Max
Published Apr 18, 2024
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José Alvarado Jr./Gothamist
By
Samantha Max
Published Apr 18, 2024
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The owner of a construction company accused in a conspiracy to make illegal donations to Mayor Eric Adams’ 2021 campaign pleaded guilty in Manhattan Thursday, joining several co-defendants who have already admitted guilt in the case.
Shamsuddin Riza and his company, United Construction Brothers Services, pleaded guilty to a felony charge of first-degree falsifying business records. He also pleaded guilty to third-degree attempted grand larceny. Riza is expected to dodge prison time, according to the plea agreement. While he faces up to four years in prison for each charge, prosecutors agreed to recommend a sentence of three years’ probation in exchange for his guilty plea.
The development in the Manhattan District Attorney’s investigation comes as a federal investigation into Adams’ 2021 campaign donations is also underway. The FBI seized the mayor’s electronic devices last fall and has searched the homes of some of his aides. The mayor has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crimes.
As part of the plea deal released Thursday, Riza also agreed not to organize any political fundraisers or solicit campaign contributions for three years, the deal states.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the plea agreement and Riza’s attorney did not immediately respond to a phone call.
Four people and two companies have now pleaded guilty in the case. Prosecutors accused the group of attempting to skirt campaign finance laws to benefit Adams’ campaign and curry favor with the candidate. They said the group engaged in a straw donor scheme by recruiting their employees and relatives to make contributions to the campaign, which they later reimbursed. The scheme allowed the defendants to evade donation limits and exploit New York City’s public matching program for campaign contributions, according to the indictment.
Dwayne Montgomery, a retired NYPD inspector with ties to the mayor, pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge in February. He agreed to refrain from political fundraising for a year, pay a $500 fine and complete 200 hours of community service. Two other men pleaded guilty last fall.
Riza admitted in the plea agreement that between August 2020 and November 2021, he, Montgomery and another co-defendant conspired to make illegal campaign donations and hide the true source of the funds, with the intention of stealing more than $3,000 in matching funds from the city’s campaign finance board. He also admitted to submitting falsified campaign contribution forms that listed other names as donors instead of his own. Riza, Montgomery and others then agreed to purchase money orders from different U.S. Post Offices to pay back the people whose names they used to make straw donations, the plea agreement states.
The indictment cites a series of phone conversations between Riza and his co-defendants in July 2021 about the straw donor scheme and his support for the Adams campaign.
“I know what the campaign finance law is. I understand that. I’m trying to raise this money,” he told a co-defendant in one call, according to the indictment. “Make sure it’s $1,000 in your name and $1,000 in another person’s name, because the matching funds is eight-to-one.”
A spokesperson for Adams’ campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The mayor has said in the past that he follows all campaign finance rules and has implemented measures to ensure it doesn’t accept straw donations, including working with a compliance attorney.
Tagged
corruption
new york city
straw donor
Politics
eric adams
elections
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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