December 19, 2024
Read the Indictment, Statement of Facts, and Statement of Fact with Exhibits
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced the indictment of INGRID LEWIS-MARTIN; her son GLENN D. MARTIN II (a/k/a SUAVE a/k/a SUAVE LUCIANO); and real estate investors RAIZADA VAID (a/k/a PINKY) and MAYANK DWIVEDI for a more than $100,000 bribery conspiracy committed while LEWIS-MARTIN served as Chief Advisor to the Mayor of the City of New York. All of the defendants are charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree. VAID and DWIVEDI are each charged with Bribery in the First Degree. LEWIS-MARTIN and MARTIN II are charged with Bribe Receiving in the First Degree and Money Laundering in the Third Degree.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., said: “We allege that Ingrid Lewis-Martin engaged in a long-running bribery, money laundering, and conspiracy scheme by using her position and authority as the Chief Advisor to the Mayor of the City of New York to illegally influence Department of Buildings and other city decisions in exchange for more than $100,000 in cash and benefits for herself and her son, Glenn Martin II. I would like to thank our prosecutors as we carry on the Manhattan D.A.’s Office’s proud tradition of taking on impactful public integrity cases, and the Department of Investigation for its steadfast partnership. We will continue to root out corruption; New Yorkers deserve no less.”
DOI Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber said: “As alleged in the indictment announced today, the Mayor’s Chief Advisor accepted cash and other benefits for herself and her son, in exchange for using her authority and influence to expedite her co-conspirators’ construction projects. When City officials monetize their office for personal gain, they undermine fundamental principles of integrity in government, diminish trust in public officials, and unfairly tarnish the reputations of the countless City employees who use their office solely to serve the public good. I thank the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for its steadfast partnership on these important public corruption investigations.”
According to court documents and statements made on the record in court, LEWIS-MARTIN and her son, GLENN MARTIN II, traded on the access and influence of her position in exchange for more than $100,000 in checks and cash from real estate developers and business owners VAID and DWIVEDI.
VAID and DWIVEDI own Manhattan businesses and properties, including the Glass Ceiling, a rooftop bar near Herald Square, and the Hotel on Rivington on the Lower East Side. Both had construction permits pending with the Department of Buildings at various times during the investigation, and repeatedly contacted LEWIS-MARTIN and MARTIN II to expedite their applications and assist with rejected applications, without regard to safety considerations or the Department of Buildings’ expertise.
On numerous occasions, after receiving a request from VAID or DWIVEDI for help with DOB applications, LEWIS-MARTIN relayed that request to the acting DOB Commissioner. The indictment and Statement of Facts enumerate those requests, the alleged favors performed for VAID and DWIVEDI, and extensive communications between the co-conspirators.
In August 2023, MARTIN II received two $50,000 checks from his co-conspirators: one cashier’s check from Dwivedi’s company, and one personal check from Vaid. MARTIN II deposited the $100,000 in checks to joint bank accounts held with LEWIS-MARTIN. He then transferred $50,000 to a company used for his DJ business, Suave Productions, and used that money to issue a $113,000 cashier’s check to purchase a Porsche.
LEWIS-MARTIN made attempts to cover up the alleged conspiracy by asking the participants to join Signal, a third-party encrypted messaging app, noting “Please only use Signal for asks.” She also instructed them to use coded language in a text message to alert her that he had sent a message via Signal: “Next time just text me ‘trying to reach you[’] and I will Look for it.” She further insulated herself by using her son as an intermediary. They allegedly laundered the bribes by funneling the money through MARTIN II’s accounts.
Assistant D.A.s Guy Tardanico and Denise Vasel are handling the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A. Christopher Beard (Deputy Chief of the Rackets Bureau), Assistant D.A. Judy Salwen (Principal Deputy Chief of the Rackets Bureau) and Executive Assistant D.A. Jodie Kane (Chief of the Investigation Division). Discovery Analyst Robert Woolf, and Paralegals Lauren Fromkin, Erin Jengo-Quirk, Samantha Becker, Alex Millard, provided valuable assistance, as did Forensic Accountant Investigator Regina Lau, and Financial Investigator Michael Losi. The investigation was conducted with, under the supervision of Supervisor Investigator Patrick O’Brien, Deputy Chief Jonathan Reid, Deputy Chief Michael Wigdor, and Chief Investigator Walter Alexander, Investigators Alex Cinque, Genesis Cornielle, Jake Diamond, Gerald Bergold, Genesis De Luna, Daniel Frooks, and Robert Mistretta.
At DOI, the case was investigated by multiple squads, including the Offices of the Inspectors General for Elected Officials, Department of Buildings, and Department of Transportation, under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Strategic Initiatives Christopher Ryan and Deputy Commissioner/Chief of Investigations Dominick Zarrella.
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[1] The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is 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.