New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was arrested Thursday on federal corruption charges, a law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told NBC 4 New York
Officials did not disclose the specific charges Silver faces. One official said the investigation in part has been looking into whether the Manhattan Democrat failed to report income he received from an outside law firm as required.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara had been focusing on how state representatives earned and reported income after the Moreland Commission was shut down in Albany before completing its own examination of alleged wrongdoing in Albany.
Silver has reported income he earned with the personal injury law firm Weitz and Luxenberg. The New York Times first reported on alleged earnings Silver made from a second firm, Goldberg and Iryami PC. Goldberg and Iryami is a tax firm that in part helps property owners try to reduce tax bills. The New York Times reported numerous building owners the firm represents are in Silver’s district.
Neither an attorney for Silver nor his spokesman returned requests for comment after news broke late Wednesday he was expected to be charged. Questions in the past have been raised about Silver’s outside income that supplement his part-time assembly work and he has always denied wrongdoing.
Silver has held office in the State Assembly since 1976 and has been the speaker of the legislative body since 1994.
The last legislative leader to be charged was former State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno. Bruno, a Republican, was acquitted last year after fighting two federal corruption counts for much of the last decade.
Bharara’s office is prosecuting Democratic state Sen. Malcolm Smith in an alleged scheme to bribe his way to run for mayor as a Republican, and has charged numerous other current and former state and local politicians including State Sens. Vincent Leibell, Hiram Monserrate and Carl Kruger and New York City councilman Larry Seabrook.
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