Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., and acting New York City Department of Investigation Commissioner Christopher Ryan today announced the indictment of JAKE UDEH, 57, a former supervisor at the New York City Department of Buildings (“DOB”), for accepting more than $75,000 worth of bribes from three construction-industry company owners: JIH YEUAN HWANG, A/K/A MIKE HWANG, 50, ANSON TSE, 40, and SHIMING TAM, 70. The defendants are charged in New York State Supreme Court indictments with Bribery in the Second Degree, Bribe Receiving in the Second Degree, and Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree.[1]

“As alleged, Jake Udeh used his supervisory role at the Department of Buildings to help his co-conspirators leapfrog those abiding by the rules for as little as $500 a project,” said District Attorney Bragg. “Over the course of the alleged conspiracy, those cash bribes combined with international travel costs totaled more than $75,000. DOB plays a critical role in ensuring the safety of the more than 1 million buildings and construction sites in New York City. Together with our partners at the Department of Investigation, we root out fraud that undermines this mission and rewards bad actors.”

“This former Department of Buildings Assistant Chief Plans Examiner was tasked with ensuring that construction plans adhered to building and safety regulations,” said Acting DOI Commissioner Christopher Ryan. “Instead, as charged, the defendant accepted bribes from these three charged construction industry professionals in exchange for using his supervisory authority to divert plan reviews to his team who he then pressured to fast-track the plans without the required scrutiny. To protect the public, DOI recommended that DOB audit the jobs overseen by the defendant to ensure they were safe, which DOB is in the process of doing, and that DOB restrict the situations in which plan reviews could be transferred across units, which DOB has implemented. This investigation demonstrates the value of partnership, I thank DOB for referring this matter to DOI and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for their collaboration and dedication to upholding the integrity of the City’s plan review process and in the City’s workforce.”

“Public trust in government depends on the fair and impartial enforcement of laws, without favoritism or exception. If these allegations are true, they would represent a profound betrayal of the public’s trust, as well as of the many dedicated public servants who work every day to keep our city safe and those responsible must be held fully accountable for their actions,” said Buildings Commissioner Ahmed Tigani. “As soon as our staff became aware of suspicious activity related to jobs reviewed by Mr. Udeh, they immediately reported the issue to the Department of Investigation, and our agency has worked with them closely on this case since that time. I would like to thank the DOB staff members who first reported this issue, as well as our partners at the Department of Investigation and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for helping us root out corruption wherever it is found.”

As alleged in court documents and statements made on the record in court, UDEH engaged in a bribery conspiracy involving more than 300 construction projects in all five boroughs from 2021 to 2025. As Assistant Chief Plan Examiner, UDEH was responsible for a team of Plan Examiners based out of DOB’s Development Hub at 80 Centre Street, which handles major construction projects citywide. UDEH abused his power by reassigning construction approvals to his team, or directly approving projects himself, in exchange for cash and other benefits totaling more than $75,000 from HWANG, TSE, and TAM. UDEH typically coordinated the payments through text messages – many of them including specific projects and payment amounts – and met his co-defendants in person to receive cash.

Specifically, as alleged in the indictments:

• HWANG, the owner of Hwang’s Construction Management Corporation, paid UDEH to influence more than 250 construction approvals between June 2021 and March 2025. HWANG paid UDEH between $500 and $1,000 in cash for each construction project, and also paid for international travel expenses, including hotel rooms and flights to Paraguay and Japan. In total, HWANG paid UDEH more than $65,000 in benefits.
• TSE, the owner of HTX Building Expediting, paid UDEH to influence more than 50 construction approvals between August 2021 and March 2025. TSE’s cash payments totaled more than $5,000.
• TAM, owner of S. M. Tam Architect, paid UDEH to influence more than 10 construction approvals between February 2024 and March 2025. TAM’s cash payments to UDEH totaled more than $5,000.

This investigation was conducted jointly by the Manhattan D.A.’s Office and the New York City Department of Investigation following a tip provided by DOB.

Assistant D.A. James Clarke is handling the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Christopher Conroy (Chief of the Rackets Bureau) and Judy Salwen (Deputy Chief of the Investigation Division), and Executive Assistant D.A. Jodie Kane (Chief of the Investigation Division). Valuable assistance was provided by Paralegal Ava Thomas, Financial Investigator Jessica Abanilla, Senior Investigator Brian O’Keeffe, and the High Technology Analysis Unit.

District Attorney Bragg thanked DOI’s Inspector General Michael Morris, First Deputy Inspector General Kim Ryan, Assistant Inspector General James Ferris, and NYPD Squad of Detectives, as well as DOB Deputy Borough Commissioner Rami Bitar, and Assistant Commissioner Reynaldo Cabrera.

 

Defendant Information

JAKE UDEH

East Stroudsburg, PA

Charges:

• Bribe Receiving in the Second Degree, a class C felony, 3 counts
• Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a class E felony, 3 counts

 

JIH YEUAN HWANG, A/K/A MIKE HWANG

Great Neck, NY

Charges:

• Bribery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, 1 count
• Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a class E felony, 1 count

 

ANSON TSE

Brooklyn, NY

Charges:

• Bribery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, 1 count
• Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a class E felony, 1 count

 

SHIMING TAM

New Providence, NJ

Charges:

• Bribery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, 1 count
• Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a class E felony, 1 count

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[1] The charges contained in the indictments are merely allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. All factual recitations are derived from documents filed in court and statements made on the record in court.