FBI: NYS Assembly Speaker Jew Vermin Sheldon Silver Arrested On Corruption Charges

http://nypost.com/2015/02/23/democrats-are-itching-to-replace-sheldon-silvers-seat/

Democrats are itching to replace Sheldon Silver’s seat
By Carl Campanile
February 23, 2015 | 6:50am

Democrats are chomping at the bit for a chance to replace disgraced ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver next year in the downtown seat he has held for the past four decades.

Silver, 70, indicted on federal corruption charges Thursday, was first elected to the Assembly in 1976 in a district that takes in the Lower East Side, Chinatown and the Financial District.

But the crafty pol, who was forced out as speaker Feb. 2, days after his corruption arrest, is contesting the charges brought by Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, which allege the assemblyman accepted millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks.

If he’s convicted, Silver would have to forfeit his seat, but some Democrats aren’t waiting to see whether the “wounded” politico survives the criminal case.

“I’m very seriously looking at running for his Assembly seat,” said downtown Democratic district leader Paul Newell, who garnered nearly a quarter of the vote in a 2008 Democratic primary challenge to Silver.

“People are saying, ‘It’s time to move forward.’ We need a new kind of representative,” Newell said. “Silver has lost a lot of his ability to deliver.”

Another downtown Democratic district leader, lawyer Jenifer Rajkumar, also is eyeing Silver’s seat, sources said. Rajkumar previously ran for City Council.

Baruch College public-affairs Professor Doug Muzzio said, “There’s blood in the water. I’m sure you’re going to see more candidates who want to run for Silver’s seat. I’d be surprised if there’s not more than two candidates.”
 
http://nypost.com/2015/02/25/sheldon-silver-nearly-takes-a-tumble-after-court-appearance/

Sheldon Silver’s on thin ice! Nearly tumbles after court appearance
By Rich Calder
February 25, 2015 | 1:33am

sheldon.jpg


Sheldon Silver is certainly skating on thin ice legally — and after court Tuesday, the embattled former Assembly speaker almost fell flat on his keister!

Minutes after pleading not guilty to sweeping corruption charges, the once-powerful politician barely dodged another embarrassing fall from grace when he slipped on a mound of ice and barely avoided landing on his butt. :mad:

Silver, 71, avoided injury after losing his balance outside Manhattan federal court on Centre Street as a TV newsman and one of the Manhattan assemblyman’s lawyers, Joel Cohen, grabbed him by his shoulders to catch him before he could fall. :mad:

Inside the courthouse, meanwhile, Cohen and Silver’s team of legal eagles insisted the charges should be dropped — because the pol’s accuser has a big mouth.

The lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the charges — which allege Silver lined his pockets with nearly $4 million in bribes and kickbacks in a stunning abuse of power dating to at least 2000 — claiming public statements that Manhattan US Attorney ​Preet Bharara made about the case “caused irreparable harm by tainting” the grand jury that indicted him on Feb. 19.

Silver’s lawyers say those same statements would ultimately taint any future jury should the case head to trial.

“Mr. Silver has been deprived of his presumption of innocence,” defense lawyer Steven Molo said after Silver pleaded not guilty to the wire fraud, mail fraud and extortion raps.

Assistant US Attorney Carrie Cohen said there has been “nothing extraordinary” and “nothing premeditated” about Bharara’s remarks on the case.

Silver faces up to 60 years behind bars.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/02/records-show-heastie-accepted-cash-from-a-convicted-mobster/

Sheldon Silver’s replacement took cash from a convicted mobster
By Michael Gartland
March 2, 2015 | 4:32am

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Carl Heastie
Photo: Helayne Seidman


The state’s newly minted Assembly speaker, Carl Heastie, accepted cash from a mobster convicted of racketeering and steered thousands more to a man who did time for manslaughter, records show.

Between 2003 and 2008, more than $2,800 flowed into the Bronx Democrat’s campaign coffers from Tri-State Employment Services and its top executives, including reputed Bonanno associate Neil Messina, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison last April in connection with a 1992 home-invasion murder.

Heastie also directed at least $250,000 to the Bronx Business Alliance. The now-defunct nonprofit’s head, John Bonizio, was convicted of manslaughter in 1982 for bludgeoning a man to death with a baseball bat. Bonizio also made a plea deal after being indicted in the same year for trying to bribe an NYPD detective.

“Associations like these seriously undermine his attempts to show that the Assembly Democrats have turned the page,” a Democratic operative said of Heastie.

“As someone who is totally undefined in the public eye, this is a troubling first impression.”

Heastie took over as Assembly speaker last month amid corruption charges against former Speaker Sheldon Silver.

Silver was arrested by the FBI in January for allegedly accepting nearly $4 million in bribes and kickbacks dating back to at least 2000.

Since 2000, Heastie has represented the northeast Bronx neighborhoods of Edenwald, Wakefield and Baychester, and currently serves as chairman of the Bronx Democratic Party, a post he eventually plans to give up.

Heastie said through a spokesman he did not know of Bonizio’s brutal crime, which was reported in newspaper accounts in 1989, or of Messina’s reputed ties to the Bonanno family.

“These contributions were made years ago, before the accusations, and [Heastie] will be donating them to charity,” spokesman Michael Whyland said. “The speaker has no input regarding the makeup of the [Bronx Business Alliance] board.” :rolleyes:

Heastie did not receive campaign contributions from Bonizio, state financial disclosure records show. But Bonizio hasn’t been quiet when it comes to political money. He’s shoveled campaign cash to Mayor Bill de Blasio and to City Council members Ritchie Torres and Annabel Palma, according to city campaign finance records.

Bonizio told The Post he’s paid his debt to society and hasn’t done anything wrong for the last 35 years. :rolleyes:

Messina went to federal prison last year for racketeering in connection with the 1992 home-invasion death of a Brooklyn man. He served as president of a key division of Tri-State, which failed to disclose to the city and state that he’d been charged. The city recently announced it was canceling a $10 million contract with Tri-State.

The downtown Manhattan firm did not return calls.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/02/judge-...r-finally-replaced-after-extended-retirement/

Retired judge tied to Sheldon Silver finally replaced
By Lia Eustachewich
March 2, 2015 | 4:02pm

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Sherry Klein Heitler should have been replaced in January.
Photo: AP/Mary Altaffer


The chief Manhattan civil judge, whose court is being probed for allegedly giving Sheldon Silver’s former law firm special treatment, is being replaced — more than two months after her term expired.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Peter H. Moulton will succeed Justice Sherry Klein Heitler, court administrators announced Monday, as federal prosecutors continue to investigate whether civil asbestos-related cases received “red-carpet treatment” at 60 Centre St.

Heitler, 70, the chief administrative judge for the Civil Court, also headed a special section called New York City Asbestos Litigation, or NYCAL — which Moulton will now oversee, as well.

In February, sources told The Post that the courthouse was under federal investigation over its alleged ties to Silver, who was forced to give up his role as Assembly speaker after being indicted on federal corruption charges.

The dozens of asbestos lawsuits were filed by Weitz & Luxenberg, where Silver was “of counsel” and received $5.3 million in what federal prosecutors say were kickbacks.

Critics have said the firm got a fast track and “better judges.”

Many of the cases wound up in courtrooms presided over by judges linked to Silver.

Courts spokesman David Bookstaver denied the claims, saying, “There is no federal investigation.”

Spokesmen for both the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI declined to comment.

Last year, at Weitz & Luxenberg’s behest, Heitler reversed a 20-year ruling that prohibited punitive damages in asbestos cases — allowing for bigger jury awards.

Over the last four years, the firm raked in $273.5 million of the $313.5 million awarded by NYCAL juries in 15 mesothelioma verdicts.

Heitler’s term expired Dec. 31 after she turned 70, the judge’s mandatory retirement age for that post, although she may still sit as an administrative judge until age 72.

The Post reported earlier this month that an order was granted allowing her to stay on as administrator temporarily.

Some attorneys were flabbergasted over the two-month process in replacing Heitler.

“You can’t allow a civil branch in the most important Supreme Court in the state to sit there with a lame-duck administrator,” one previously told The Post.

Heitler had served as administrative judge since 2009 and will now oversee policy and planning for the courts system.

Silver, 71, was indicted in January on corruption charges alleging that he abused his political power in order to line his pockets with more than $4 million in bribes and kickbacks dating back to 2000.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/05/bharara-says-he-cut-silver-a-break-spared-him-perp-walk/

Bharara says he cut Silver a break, ‘spared him perp walk’
By Rich Calder
March 5, 2015 | 8:03pm

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Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara fired back at Sheldon Silver Thursday, saying his public comments about the once-powerful Assembly speaker’s arrest were more than fair — and besides, he even cut him a break by sparing him a “perp walk.”

“The U.S. Attorney’s statements violated no ethical rule, did not unfairly prejudice the defendant, and were consistent with the stated mission of the [Department of Justice],” Bharara’s team wrote in a Manhattan federal court filing responding to Silver’s motion to have the case tossed based on the prosecutor’s post-arrest statements.

Silvers lawyers two weeks ago claimed that statements Bharara made about the charges — which allege Silver lined his pockets with nearly $4 million in bribes and kickbacks in a stunning abuse of power dating to at least 2000 — “caused irreparable harm by tainting” the grand jury that indicted him on Feb. 19.

They also say those same statements – made at press conference after Silver’s Jan. 22 arrest, during a speech at New York Law School and in a CNBC interview — would ultimately taint any future jury should the case head to trial.

But Bharara said Silver’s motion to dismiss should be soundly rejected because Silver’s legal team hasn’t offered any evidence of grand jury prejudice and tries to boost its assertions by taking remarks “out of context.”

Bharara notes that at the press conference he used the words “alleged” and “allegations” to describe the charges at least 35 times and was just as careful discussing the charges during other appearances.

“The statements made by the U.S. Attorney that are challenged here are fully compatible with the proper and fair administration of justice and did not violate the defendant’s rights in any way,” the filing says.

“… It is unremarkable that the arrest of the longtime Speaker of the Assembly on allegations that he committed a large-scale and long-running honest services fraud and extortion scheme generated substantial publicity, and it plainly would have done so regardless of any statements made by the U.S. Attorney.”

And he goes on to say that he actually went out of his way to spare Silver undue embarrassment by having him surrender in the basement of the Javits Federal Building before being driven to the courthouse rather than
subjecting him to a typical “perp walk.”

Silver, however, was still photographed by many media outlets sitting inside the car as he awaited transport.

Silver, once acknowledged as the second-most powerful Democrat in the state, was forced to step down as speaker following his arrest. He remains a member of the Assembly and has said he’s “confident” he will be “vindicated in the courtroom.”

His stunning arrest capped a secret grand jury probe that began in June 2013, and marked the latest in a string of public corruption cases spearheaded by crusading Bharara.

Silver, 71, faces up to 60 years behind bars.

Responding to Bhahara’s filing, Silver’s lawyer Steven Molo issued a statement noting that Silver “entered an unequivocal plea of NOT GUILTY” at his arraignment two weeks ago because “he is not guilty.” :rolleyes:

He also said Silver ” looks forward to having his name cleared in a court of law.” :rolleyes:
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/11/silvers-woes-gives-new-hope-to-private-schools-tax-credit/

Silver’s woes gives new hope to private schools tax credit
By Aaron Short
March 11, 2015 | 9:32pm

Advocates pushing for a state tax credit to help parochial and private schools see a Silver lining in the Assembly’s change of leadership this year.

Timothy Cardinal Dolan said Wednesday that the credit proposal, which has been stalled in Albany for years, has a better chance of becoming law now that Sheldon Silver is no longer Assembly speaker.

“[Silver] was one of those who honestly said, ‘No, I’m not going to support you,’” Dolan recalled at a rally with supporters of the Education Investment Tax Credit outside El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem.

“I think the political leaders last year saw the depth of the support, the fervor of our advocacy and they’re all coming together to say . . . ‘We’re going to make it happen,’” he added.

Gov. Cuomo included the credit in his budget proposal, and the state Senate passed the measure in January. That leaves the Democratic-dominated Assembly, where teacher unions opposing the credit have considerable clout.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie has said his members are having an “open discussion” on the tax credit.

But he hasn’t included it in the Assembly state budget plan, although 76 members — a majority — have signed on as supporters.

The pending bill would allow a percentage of donations to a scholarship fund to be deducted from state income taxes. Donations generated by the credit would be divided equally between public-school needs and scholarships for private and parochial schools.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/13/two-legal-defense-groups-show-support-for-sheldon-silver/

Two legal-defense groups show support for Sheldon Silver
By Rich Calder
March 13, 2015 | 4:49am

Two top legal-defense groups have come to the aid of disgraced former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. :mad:

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed a joint brief Thursday supporting the indicted but still politically connected Silver, despite objections from the government.

Silver has filed a motion to dismiss the corruption charges against him because of public comments made by Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara.

Silver claims the remarks could taint potential jurors.

“This is a criminal prosecution, not a political campaign — but one wouldn’t know it from the conduct of the United States attorney in this case,” the two groups said in a joint statement.

“No defendant could resist the media onslaught Sheldon Silver has endured.”

Bharara has said he never broke ethics rules while talking about Silver, who is charged with pocketing more than $4 million in bribes and kickbacks while serving as one of the most powerful politicians in the state.
 
Hello

Umm, when is the "Holycost" coming in play ?

IMO the only reason he got noticed with his fellow money grubber's in NYC/NYS was they just took/stole so much that the victims were screaming so loudly the regime legal system had to respond, as likely some upper elite goys and joos were taken too.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/03/15/sheldon-silver-linked-law-firm-has-hand-in-asbestos-funds/

Sheldon Silver-linked law firm has hand in asbestos funds
By Susan Edelman
March 15, 2015 | 1:35am

Weitz & Luxenberg, the law firm accused of exploiting its connection to Sheldon Silver in New York City’s asbestos court, has come under fire in another lucrative arena — multibillion-dollar bankruptcy trusts.

The East Village firm, which gained more than 100 mesothelioma clients in an alleged kickback scheme by the disgraced assemblyman, sits on 15 advisory committees for trusts set up by bankrupt companies to compensate victims — including Weitz’s own clients.

The loose system fosters a “fox guarding the hen house” culture, says a article published last month by Measley’s Asbestos Bankruptcy Report.

The 15 trusts guided by Weitz have paid out $12.2 billion between 2006 and 2013. Other trusts, which may also pay Weitz clients, have doled out $51.6 billion, the report says. Lawyers typically get at least 25 percent of the payments.

It’s unknown how many Weitz clients got payments — or whether any were funneled through Silver.

Perry Weitz, a partner in the firm, helped set up trusts for major companies such as Owens Corning, USG, and Kaiser Aluminum, his Web site boasts.

Trusts for asbestos-injured workers — who can file claims and also take active companies to court — still hold about $30 billion.

The system is rife with double-dipping abuse. Lawyers file trust claims blaming a client’s asbestos illness on bankrupt companies, but often hide those claims in lawsuits blaming active companies for the same illness.

For instance, Weitz & Luxenberg won a $25 million verdict against DaimlerChrysler in 2006 in a special Manhattan asbestos court where the firm files 50 to 70 percent of the cases.

At trial, Weitz shot down defense arguments that bankrupt Johns Manville, which made insulation and roofing, shared some blame for the worker’s exposure. “How should they be responsible?” the firm asked.

But a year after the trial, Weitz filed trust claims for the same client seeking payments from Johns Manville.

A Weitz spokesman said the firm had no comment.

In 2011, Weitz asked Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Sherry Klein Heitler to drop a requirement that plaintiffs disclose before trial any trust claims they had filed or intended to file.

Heitler, who was replaced as chief asbestos judge last week, denied the motion, but tweaked the rule, saying lawyers did not have to reveal trust claims “they may or may not anticipate filing.”

Her wording left wiggle room for potential fraud, Cardozo Law School professor Lester Brickman told The Post. Brickman, a leading expert on asbestos litigation, testified before Congress lastmonth in favor of a bill to curb the double dealing.

After Silver’s indictment last month, Weitz & Luxenberg claimed it was “shocked” that the former Assembly speaker had steered $500,000 in state grants to Columbia-Presbyterian mesothelioma researcher Dr. Robert Taub, who in turn referred the 100-plus patients.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/04/02/feds-seeking-to-seize-sheldon-silvers-kickback-cash/

Feds seeking to seize Sheldon Silver’s kickback cash
By Rich Calder
April 2, 2015 | 12:33am

The feds really want to make Sheldon Silver pay — and they’ve filed new court papers seeking to seize millions of dollars in legal fees and other assets the disgraced pol allegedly pocketed through a nearly $4 million bribery and kickback scheme.

In Silver’s February indictment, Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara outlined plans to seize the Manhattan assemblyman’s Albany pension, his homes on the Lower East Side and in the Catskills, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in investment and bank accounts if Silver is convicted. :D

On Tuesday, Bharara, as expected, upped the ante by seeking a court order to seize additional bank accounts and other assets, some held by third parties, as well as at least $3.7 million in payments Silver collected from two law firms.

Silver is accused of collecting more than $3 million in legal fees by steering asbestos-related cancer cases from a leading Manhattan oncologist to the Weitz & Luxenberg law firm. In exchange, Silver allegedly funneled two state research grants of $250,000 each to Dr. Robert Taub, along with other official favors.

Joel Cohen, a lawyer for Silver, said the feds’ forfeiture motion is “somewhat perfunctory” and nothing more than “an administrative act by the US attorney that just follows up on earlier seeking of assets.”
 
http://nypost.com/2015/04/02/asbestos-firms-ready-to-fight-silvers-slanted-legal-system/

Asbestos firms ready to fight Silver’s ‘slanted legal system’
By Susan Edelman and Julia Marsh
April 2, 2015 | 11:54pm

Now that disgraced former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is out of power, asbestos defense lawyers are revolting against what they say is a slanted legal system.

Silver, who had ties to the mesothelioma-suit firm Weitz & Luxenberg, was accused of using his clout to stack the odds for plaintiffs.

A group of 45 law firms that represent companies defending against asbestos lawsuits asked Administrative Judge Peter Moulton this week to put a 60-day moratorium on any pending and new cases to consider their gripes over Silver’s alleged influence.

Moulton replaced Justice Sherry Heitler as head of a special section of Manhattan Supreme Court called NYCAL, or New York City Asbestos Litigation, last month.

Under her tenure, Heitler, at the request of Weitz & Luxenberg, last year lifted a 20-year rule that barred punitive damages in asbestos cases — paving the way for jackpot jury settlements and verdicts.

The court also fast-tracked plaintiffs’ asbestos cases over other civil matters, the defense lawyers said.

Weitz handles more than half the asbestos cases in Manhattan. It won $273.4 million the last four years.
 
This is an example of joos over playing their hand historically like Madeoffwithit.

Silvertheif likely just phucked over so many goys with his pals in the NYS soak'em scam's and political slop all over the state that the regime got so many complaints they had to go after him.

Now if he ever goes to jail, it won't be like Edgar J. Steele who did not rob or cheat any one, but got 40 years.

Likely if Silverstink goes to any jail and not house arrest because of health it will be some legion base with golf courses and special meals, bank on it.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/04/04/taxpayers-footing-the-bill-for-sheldon-silvers-corruption-saga/

Taxpayers footing the bill for Sheldon Silver’s corruption saga
By Yoav Gonen
April 4, 2015 | 12:27am

New Yorkers are shelling out bucks for Shelly.

Taxpayers are being forced to pay out funds so Albany can respond to former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s corruption indictment.

The Assembly has hired white-collar criminal-defense firm Zuckerman Spaeder to handle requests for documents and other information related to the Silver case.

The Assembly is authorized to pay the firm $45,000 through February 2016, according to state Comptroller’s Office records.

The expense stirred outrage among Silver’s fellow lawmakers.

“Once again, the taxpayers foot the bill,” said Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin (R-Troy). “Sheldon Silver should reimburse the taxpayers for his alleged corruption.”

Silver has been accused of reaping more than $3 million in legal fees by steering cancer cases to the Weitz & Luxenberg law firm, while rewarding his medical tipster with state grants and other favors.

He has pleaded not guilty and says he will be cleared. His defense sought to have the case tossed over Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara’s “prejudiced” public remarks on the case.

A spokesman for the new speaker, Carl Heastie, said Zuckerman Spaeder was hired to help the Assembly comply with Bharara’s requests in the Silver case.

“The Assembly is cooperating fully with the United States Attorney’s Office. Ours is a cordial and professional relationship,” said Zuckerman Spaeder attorney Paul Shechtman.

The firm’s hiring was first reported by The Buffalo News.

It’s hardly the first time Albany shenanigans have walloped taxpayers’ wallets.

In February, $545,000 in public funds were used to settle two cases of sexual harassment filed against ex-Assemblyman Vito Lopez by his former legislative aides.

Lopez was forced to pay only $35,000 out of his own pocket.

Silver was caught up in the Lopez case after it was revealed that he had OK’d a secret $103,000 settlement with two prior alleged victims of sexual harassment.

That payout also came from the public coffers.

Silver served as the Assembly leader since 1994 and was on the verge of becoming the longest tenured speaker ever before his January arrest.

Democrats forced him out as their leader in February after the corruption charges and replaced him with Heastie, the former Bronx Democratic Party chair.

On Thursday, a group of 45 law firms accused Silver of using his clout to stack the odds in asbestos and mesothelioma cases to favor Weitz & Luxenberg.

Weitz & Luxenberg handles more than half of such cases in Manhattan Supreme Court.

The 45 firms asked a judge to impose a 60-day moratorium on pending and new asbestos and mesothelioma cases so their complaints could be heard.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/04/13/sheldon-silver-son-in-law-busted-by-fbi-in-alleged-ponzi-scheme/

Sheldon Silver son-in-law busted by feds in alleged Ponzi scheme
By Bruce Golding and Rich Calder
April 13, 2015 | 7:30pm

A son-in-law of indicted former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was busted by the feds Monday on charges that he ran a $7 million Ponzi scheme.

Marcello Trebitsch, who’s married to Silver’s daughter, Michelle Trebitsch, allegedly promised his victims double-digit returns with very low risk before the scam collapsed last December.

Trebitsch, 37, of Brooklyn, claimed he would use investors’ money to buy large-cap stocks through Allese Capital LLC, a firm he co-owns with his wife, who is a certified public accountant, according to a complaint unsealed Monday.

But he only actually invested a portion of the funds — and racked up “enormous trading losses” he kept secret — and then spent the rest on himself and his wife and to pay back other investors.

The charges against Trebitsch, according to sources, are not connected to the federal probe against the disgraced Silver, who is currently fighting corruption charges and was forced following his arrest to give up the leadership post in Albany he held for more than two decades.

“Investing in securities entails certain risks, but should not include the risk of being defrauded by one’s investment manager,” said Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bhahara.

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Michelle Trebitsch, Sheldon Silver’s daughter.
Photo: J.C. Rice/New York Post


Trebitsch appeared in Manhattan federal court Monday where he was released on $500,000 bond after being charged in the two-count complaint with securities and wire fraud.

He faces up to 40 years behind bars and $5.25 million in fines.

Following the hearing, his lawyer Nathaniel Marmur declined comment about the charges or when asked if he felt Trebitsch was targeted by the government because of his relation to Silver.

Trebitsch allegedly ran the scam from 2009 through December 2014, promising double-digit annual returns in the range of 14 to 16 percent.

Regarding the portion of investor funds that he did use to legitimately purchase securities, Trebitsch suffered net trading losses that he didn’t disclose to the investors. Instead, he sent the investors false monthly account statements and tax forms, which showed positive annual returns ranging from 15 to 19 percent on the investors’ investment in Allese, the feds said.

Although she has not been charged with any wrongdoing, the complaint notes that Silver’s daughter is a co-owner and managing partner in Allese and that she “kept the books” for the company.

Silver in January was arrested for allegedly lining his pockets with nearly $4 million in bribes and kickbacks in a stunning abuse of power dating to at least 2000.

The Manhattan politician, once acknowledged as the second-most powerful Democrat in the state, was forced to step down as speaker following his arrest. He remains a member of the Assembly and has said he’s “confident” he will be “vindicated in the courtroom.”

His stunning arrest capped a secret grand jury probe that began in June 2013, and marked the latest in a string of public corruption cases spearheaded by crusading Bharara.

Silver, 71, faces up to 60 years behind bars.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/04/28/lawyers-for-silver-accuse-feds-of-withholding-evidence/

Lawyers for Silver accuse feds of withholding evidence
By Rich Calder
April 28, 2015 | 12:40pm

As a judge set a ​November ​trial date for Sheldon Silver’s corruption case, lawyers for the scandal-scarred former Assembly Speaker accused federal prosecutors of withholding key evidence.

During a Manhattan federal court hearing in which the once-powerful Silver pleaded not guilty to new charges that he put dirty money into high-yield investment opportunities, lawyer Joel Cohen told Manhattan federal Judge Valerie Caproni that Team Silver wants “all of the material” the government received related to the case f​​rom the disbanded Moreland Commission on Public Corruption.

Although prosecutors said they turned over all relevant documents, Silver’s lawyers weren’t buying it. “We don’t believe they’ve turned over everything,” said Silver lawyer Steven Molo.

He declined to say which documents he believes the feds are hiding.

Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bhahara’s investigation of Silver — ​​who is accused in a $4 million bribery and kickback scheme — grew out of the investigation conducted by the Moreland panel looking into corruption in Albany that was abruptly shut down by Gov. Cuomo.

Prosecutors say they expect to present a month-long case against Silver.

Among the new allegations in the superseding indictment handed up last week is that he put $340,000 from his account under a family member’s name in 2011 to dodge disclosure laws that would have forced him to reveal the shady investments.

Silver also allegedly transferred $642,000 into investment vehicles that more than doubled in value since 2006 to at least $1.4 million. The revised indictment also claims Silver did not pay a fee to the adviser for access to the high-yield private instruments and never disclosed to the adviser the source of the funds.

Assistant US Attorney Carrie Cohen said the investigation is ongoing and did not rule out revising the indictment again with new charges.

“I do not rule that we discover something as we continue our investigation,” she said.

Judge Caproni set Nov. 2 as the trial start date.

Cohen had pushed for a later date because he’s handling a health-care fraud case in Chicago federal court that could potentially overlap with Silver’s trial, but Caproni refused to begin any later than November 2.

Silver’s Assembly seat and others in Albany are not up for re-election until 2016, so the trial is expected to have little statewide political impact.

“It doesn’t really matter,” Silver told The Post, when asked about the trial date. “We will be vindicated whenever.”

He later told a crowd of reporters gathered outside the courthouse that he’s “glad” a trial date has been set, adding, “I am confident that at the end of this process I will be totally vindicated.”

Silver, once acknowledged as the second-most powerful Democrat in the state, was forced to step down as speaker following his arrest in January. He remains a member of the Assembly.

His stunning arrest capped a secret grand jury probe that began in June 2013, and marked the latest in a string of public corruption cases spearheaded by crusading Bharara.

Silver, 71, faces up to 60 years in prison if convicted.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/05/13/indicted-sheldon-silver-celebrated-at-assembly-dinner/

Indicted Sheldon Silver celebrated at Assembly dinner
By Carl Campanile
May 13, 2015 | 11:54pm

He’s under federal indictment, but that didn’t stop Sheldon Silver’s colleagues from celebrating his tenure in the Assembly — treating him as a venerated peer rather than a pariah. :mad:

Silver was a featured speaker at a dinner for veteran legislators Monday night near the state capital, where he received a hearty ovation from both Republicans and Democrats, sources told The Post.

The so-called “Pilots” dinner honors Assembly members who served at least five terms. Former Assembly speakers are invited to speak.

Silver is accused of accepting nearly $4 million in a bribery scheme that spanned years. He maintains his innocence.

Attendees admitted that tension hung in the air when the disgraced former speaker showed up and addressed them at the Frankin Plaza in Troy.

But Silver elicited roaring laughter by cracking a subtle joke about his criminal case pending in Manhattan Federal Court.

He called out to former Staten Island Assemblyman Eric Vitaliano, who is now a federal judge in Brooklyn.

“Shelly said, ‘Judge Vitaliano is in the Eastern District. It’s a quiet place. The action is in the Southern District [where Silver is being tried],’’’ one attendee said.

“We all laughed.”
 
http://nypost.com/2015/06/13/feds-mock-sheldon-silvers-bid-to-dismiss-corruption-charges/

Feds mock Sheldon Silver’s bid to dismiss corruption charges
By Josh Saul
June 13, 2015 | 2:33am

Federal prosecutors mocked ex-state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s attempt to get his corruption charges dismissed, writing in court papers filed Friday that the payments he received were kickbacks whether they were handed over as “cash in a suitcase or disguised as referral fees.’’

Silver has tried unsuccessfully to get the charges tossed in the past by claiming he violated no federal law by receiving fees for referring cases to a law firm.

“As much as Silver may wish otherwise, bribes, kickbacks and extortion are just as illegal in New York as they are in every other state,” the prosecutors wrote. :D

Silver resigned as Assembly speaker after he was charged in January.
 
The reason we post the full stories here is because the sources like to send them down a black hole if they can.

http://nypost.com/2015/07/02/as-feds-zero-in-insiders-say-silver-and-skelos-should-be-scared/

As feds zero in, insiders say Silver and Skelos should be scared
By Jamie Schram and Priscilla DeGregory
July 2, 2015 | 11:07pm

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Dean Skelos (left), Gov. Andrew Cuomo (center) and Sheldon Silver sit together in January 2015.
Photo: AP


The seven-year prison sentence imposed on crooked ex-state Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith was a shot across the bow of his former Albany associates, Sheldon Silver and Dean Skelos — and one they’d be wise not to ignore, sources told The Post on Thursday.

“If they weren’t before, then they should be shaking in their boots now,” said a law-enforcement official familiar with Silver’s and Skelos’ corruption cases.

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Former State Sen. Malcolm Smith
Photo: AP


“Smith just got seven years [for trying to bribe his way onto the 2013 mayoral ballot] and he didn’t even steal money. What do you think’s going to happen to Skelos and Silver?

“They should both cut deals fast because they are going to get crushed and the lawyers are bleeding them dry,” the official added.

Silver and Skelos, leaders of the Assembly and state Senate, respectively, until their arrests this year, are both charged with peddling their influence in Albany for bribes and kickbacks.

A defense lawyer for imprisoned ex-Yonkers Councilwoman Sandy Annabi said he’d advise both men to seriously evaluate the evidence the feds have against them.

“I would say that public-corruption cases are serious business, and we need to be honest about our chances at trial and decide whether the case would be better fought at sentencing,” said lawyer Ed Sapone.

Silver defense lawyer Joel *Cohen declined to comment. Skelos’ lawyer didn’t return a call seeking comment.
 
http://nypost.com/2015/07/12/sheldon-silver-used-allegedly-corrupt-cash-to-give-out-800g-in-loans/

Sheldon Silver used allegedly corrupt cash to give out $800G in loans
By Isabel Vincent and Melissa Klein
July 12, 2015 | 9:03am

Sheldon Silver was very generous with his allegedly ill-gotten cash.

The disgraced former Assembly speaker doled out more than $800,000 in the years before his indictment on federal corruption charges.

Silver gave an interest-free loan of between $50,000 and $75,000 to a young couple who lived directly above him in the Grand Street co-op where he has resided for decades, his state financial-disclosure forms show. The loan was made in 2013 and comes due in 2023, according to the records.

Silver also gave between $500,000 and $750,000 to Counsel Financial, an upstate firm that loans money to law firms waiting for big payouts. Silver has collected hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest for these loans over the years.

But federal prosecutors in April seized $100,000 of the money Silver loaned to Counsel Financial.

They had already taken $3.7 million when they charged the Manhattan Democrat in a bribery and kickback scheme.

Joel Cohen, Silver’s lawyer, had no comment on Silver’s loans to Counsel Financial or to the Katz family who lived upstairs from him.
Allen Katz also would not comment.
 
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