In a press conference earlier today, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, former Chief Advisor to Mayor Eric Adams, refuted the allegations of corruption against her, after abruptly resigning yesterday. “I’m being falsely accused of something,” Lewis-Martin said, flanked by her lawyer Arthur Aidala. “I don’t know exactly what it is, but I know that I was told that it’s something that’s illegal, and I have never done anything illegal in my capacity in government.”
The investigation against Lewis-Martin first came to light when she and others were stopped by authorities in JFK Airport upon returning from a trip to Japan on September 27th, just two days after Adams was indicted by federal prosecutors with New York’s Southern District. The group traveling with Adams’ senior advisor included Jesse Hamilton, a lawyer overseeing real estate deals for the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (which manages the city’s real estate holdings), and Diana Boutross, VP with the real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield. All three had their phones seized at the airport, while Lewis-Martin was subpoenaed and her home was raided by federal authorities.
Shortly after these interactions with law enforcement, Lewis-Martin went on her lawyer’s podcast to explain herself and, surprising many, made comments that did not amount to a total statement of innocence in the face of the investigation against her. “We are imperfect, but we’re not thieves,” she said on Arthur Aidala’s talk show. “I do believe that in the end that the New York City public will see that we have not done anything illegal to the magnitude or scale that requires the federal government and the DA’s office to investigate us.”
In today’s presser, Aidala indicated that the case against the longtime Adams ally was politically motivated, and drew a clearer line concerning his client’s innocence. “Pieces of puzzles are going to be put together to make it look as horrible as possible,” Aidala said. “But we know the truth, and the truth is Ingrid Lewis-Martin never broke the law.”
Ingrid Lewis-Martin is one of Mayor Eric Adams’ oldest allies, first becoming friends with the then-transit cop in the 80s, and collaborating with him for the first time in the political arena as his campaign manager for his run for State Senate in 2006. She would then be Adams’ deputy when he was elected Brooklyn Borough President in 2014, and followed him to City Hall as his Chief Advisor. Adams addressed her resignation in a press conference today. “It’s going to be hard to believe I’ll walk out my office and she’s not going to be in the office next to me.”
