New Cuomo criminal investigation greenlit by comptroller
Gov. Andrew Cuomo is accused of violating New York ethics laws with his book deal. Fox News’ Bryan Llenas with more.
An investigation to determine whether New York state lawmakers should attempt to impeach Gov. Andrew Cuomo is underway, with about 70 witnesses contacted, according to reports.
In addition, the investigators have received more than 200 tips regarding the Democrat’s conduct, Politico reported.
The New York state Assembly’s scrutiny of Cuomo is wide-ranging, covering allegations of sexual harassment as well as claims that the governor improperly received help from state employees to produce his 2020 book, "American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic."
It is also examining how the state handled an alleged cover-up of potential structural problems on the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, named for the governor’s late father, who also served as governor, the Times Union of Albany reported.
The reports were unclear about whether allegations tying Cuomo’s policies to coronavirus-related deaths among the state’s nursing home patients would be among the issues examined by the Assembly panel.
The latest developments on the investigators’ work were disclosed Wednesday during a public meeting in Albany, the state capital, convened by the state Assembly’s Judiciary Committee, Politico reported.
Tips from the public came in through a hotline set up by Davis Polk & Wardwell, a law firm hired by the Assembly for its investigation, the report said.
"In total, Davis Polk has spoken with attorneys for about 70 people who may have relevant information," Assembly member Charles Lavine, a Democrat from Nassau County, said. "And Davis Polk has also been in contact with four government agencies about potentially relevant information – document requests and interviews."
Davis Polk specializes in white-collar criminal cases and several members of its legal team are former federal prosecutors, the Times Union reported.
The public portion of Wednesday’s committee meeting lasted less than 10 minutes before panel members convened with attorneys in a closed session, the newspaper reported.
The meeting regarding the impeachment probe was the second to be held, with the first held in March, according to the report.
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Cuomo faces other investigations, including by the state attorney general’s office and the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn, the newspaper’s report noted.
The attorney general’s probe addresses the sexual harassment allegations while the federal probe is examining the nursing home deaths.
This week the attorney general also received a referral from the state comptroller's office for a separate investigation into the nursing home deaths but the attorney general's office declined to comment on the matter, Fox News previously reported.
Cuomo and his representatives have repeatedly denied any allegations of wrongdoing by the governor.
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