New York Democratic Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin surrendered to federal police on Tuesday and appeared before a judge in connection with a corruption case, according to a statement from the Attorney General's office. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York stated in the release that "Brian Benjamin, Lieutenant Governor of New York, is charged with corruption and other related offenses." It was noted that the lieutenant governor, 45 years old, "went to the FBI office in Manhattan this morning" and appeared before a federal judge.
The elected official is specifically accused of having "used his influence" since 2019 as a member of the state legislature to "redirect a state-managed grant (New York) to an organization controlled by a real estate investor in exchange for donations" to support his campaign to be elected as New York City Comptroller in 2021. The grant, amounting to $50,000, was paid to a nonprofit organization controlled by the real estate investor.
Benjamin is also accused of submitting forged documents when announcing his candidacy for the lieutenant governor position in the 2022 elections, and "engaging in a series of lies and deceit to cover up the corruption scheme." He faces a possible prison sentence of up to 10 years for the corruption charges, and up to 20 years for other offenses, particularly document forgery. Benjamin took office as Lieutenant Governor of New York last August, succeeding Kathy Hochul, who became the state governor following the resignation of her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, who faced allegations of sexual assault.
