Acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove has ordered federal prosecutors in New York to drop corruption charges against New York city Mayor Eric Adams, a senior Justice Department official said Monday evening.
The order is for all charges against Adams to be dismissed, and the dismissal is without prejudice, the official said, meaning charges could be refiled in the future.
The charges have not yet been dismissed and federal prosecutors in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A dismissal would have to come in a motion from prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, where the charges were brought. A motion to dismiss would also have to be reviewed by a judge.
Adams, a former New York Police Department captain elected mayor in 2021, was charged with bribery, fraud and other counts in an indictment in September. The indictment accused Adams of taking $100,000 worth of free plane tickets and luxury hotel stays from wealthy Turkish nationals and at least one government official in a nearly decade-long corruption scheme.
Adams has pleaded not guilty. He has said that he is innocent, that the charges are politically motivated and that he would fight the charges.
The senior Justice Department official said Monday that the charges would be reviewed when a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney is confirmed.
Damian Williams, the Biden-appointed U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York who brought the charges against Adams, resigned after President Trump won the 2024 election.
An attorney for Adams in late January contacted Justice Department leadership about dropping the criminal case against him, NBc News has reported.
