US prosecutors have charged New York’s Eric Adams with bribery and fraud as part of a “long-running” scheme that has upended politics in America’s largest city.

As part of what officials have described as “abuse of power”, Adams is alleged to have accepted illegal gifts worth more than $100,000 (£75,000) from Turkish citizens and at least one government official.

In return, Turkish officials allegedly solicited favors from the mayor, including help bypassing security regulations to open a consulate in New York, prosecutors said.

Adams, a former police commissioner, has denied any wrongdoing and vowed to fight the allegations in court.

Let’s take a look at what we know.

Eric Adams faces five separate criminal charges, including “conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery, and receiving campaign contributions from aliens,” wire fraud, two counts of soliciting a contribution by an alien and bribery “.

According to the 57-page indictment, Adams allegedly accepted more than $100,000 in luxury travel — including hotel stays, luxury meals and airline upgrades — from Turkish nationals starting in 2016, when he was president of the New York City borough of Brooklyn.

For example, in one case, Adams is said to have received a “heavily discounted” stay in the “Bentley Room” of the St Regis hotel in Istanbul, paying $600 for a two-day visit that was valued at around $7,000.

“This was a multi-year scheme to buy favor with a single New York politician on the rise,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said at a news conference.

In addition, Adams is said to have sought campaign contributions from Turkish sources for his 2021 mayoral election campaign.

None of this was publicly disclosed, and prosecutors allege that Adams used “straw donors” to conceal the sources of the money, sometimes creating “fake paper trails” that suggested he had paid or intended to pay for the gifts .

One of the charges in the indictment, wire fraud, stems from allegations that Adams devised a scheme to obtain money “by making false and fraudulent pretenses” in his transactions.

Specifically, prosecutors allege that the money Adams obtained from Turkey allowed him to qualify for a government financing program that provides eligible political candidates with money to supplement donations from New York City residents.

As part of the initiative, known as the Matching Funds Program, candidates are prohibited from accepting contributions from people who are not U.S. citizens or legal residents, as well as from corporations and foreign entities and organizations.

According to the Justice Department, for each illegal contribution, Adams fraudulently obtained as much as $2,000 in public funds.

In return for the campaign contributions and lavish travel, Adams is said to have responded to a variety of concerns from Turkish nationals and at least one government official.

For example, in 2016, the indictment alleges that Adams was told he would cut ties with a Turkish community center in Brooklyn after a Turkish official told him it was affiliated with a group “hostile” to the Turkish government.

That Turkish official also reportedly told him that he could no longer associate himself with the center if he wanted to continue receiving “support” from the Turkish government.

In another case in 2021, prosecutors allege that Adams – at the urging of a Turkish diplomat – also pressured a New York Fire Department official to ensure the city’s new Turkish consular building was ready for a visit from the Turkish President – ​​without a fire inspection.

The fire official responsible for reviewing the skyscraper consulate building was told he would lose his job if he failed to approve the building, prosecutors allege.

In that case, the indictment alleges that a Turkish official told Adams it was “his turn to pay him back.”

“After Adams intervened, the skyscraper was opened at the request of the Turkish official,” the complaint states.

Adams has also denied these claims.

“I know I don’t take money from foreign donors,” he said Thursday.

In theory, Adams could receive a lengthy prison sentence for the charges.

The wire fraud count alone carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, while both counts of soliciting campaign contributions from foreigners each carry a maximum sentence of five years.

The bribery charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.

The remaining charge, “conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery, and receiving campaign contributions from foreign nationals,” carries a maximum sentence of five years.

In the shorter term, the charges are likely to jeopardize Adams’ political future ahead of his 2025 re-election.

Dozens of lawmakers, including New York City Council members and Democratic U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortes, have called for him to resign.

Adams has vowed to fight the charges and called for an “immediate” trial, resisting calls to resign.

“I will continue to do my job as mayor,” he said at a news conference.