Former New York City Official Charged With Bribery And Fraud

An Indictment has been unsealed charging ANTHONY HERBERT—the former Citywide Public Housing Liaison at the New York City Mayor’s Office—with committing bribery, kickback, and fraud offenses. HERBERT was arrested this morning and will be presented today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron. T “New Yorkers deserve honest and competent public officials,” said United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, “As alleged, at a time when Anthony Herbert was serving as City Hall’s liaison to the City’s public housing residents, he engaged in blatant pay-to-play schemes to enrich himself. The women and men of the Southern District of New York are committed to holding accountable government officials who abuse their positions of trust to benefit themselves.” “It’s alleged Anthony Herbert used his position in the NYC Mayor’s Office to create a side hustle of bribery and fraud,” said IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Harry T. Chavis, Jr. “He allegedly took advantage of his role to line his pockets by offering unfair advantages to certain businesses. Today’s indictment is the result of the incredible partnership between IRS-CI special agents and SDNY investigators, and now Herbert will face justice for his alleged criminal acts.” “This former Mayor’s Office official was responsible for engaging with members of the community on behalf of the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit, first as the Brooklyn Borough Director and then as the liaison between residents and leadership of public housing, and City Hall,” said DOI Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber. “He allegedly exploited this position of trust and influence to enrich himself, accepting $16,000 in bribes and kickbacks in return for favors, including pressuring other government officials to give City contracts to one company, and steering publicly-funded financial assistance payments to a second business, according to the indictment. As charged, he allegedly filed false financial disclosures with the City omitting the payments he received to conceal his criminal conduct. I thank the IRS and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for their partnership on this investigation and for their commitment to hold accountable City employees who abuse their position for their own gain.” As alleged in the Indictment:[1] From in or about February 2022 through in or about September 2025, HERBERT worked for the Office of the New York City Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit (“Community Affairs”) within City Hall. In that capacity, HERBERT first functioned as the Brooklyn Borough Director for Community Affairs from in or about February 2022 through in or about February 2023, and then as the Citywide Public Housing Liaison until in or about September 2025. In the latter role, HERBERT was responsible for engaging with residents and leadership of the New York City Housing Authority (“NYCHA”) on behalf of City Hall. HERBERT abused his position repeatedly and flagrantly by soliciting and receiving bribes and kickbacks in exchange for HERBERT’s agreement to advise and pressure other City officials to take actions benefiting those who paid HERBERT bribes and kickbacks, in two distinct schemes. In the first scheme, HERBERT solicited and received from a particular individual (the “Security Company Executive”) thousands of dollars in cash payments in exchange for HERBERT advising and pressuring other City officials to award the Security Company Executive’s security guard company with City contracts, including for providing services at NYCHA developments. In the second scheme, HERBERT advised, pressured, and fraudulently induced other City officials to approve payments to a director of a particular funeral home (the “Funeral Home Director”) under a financial assistance program for burial services for low-income families, in exchange for thousands of dollars in kickbacks from the proceeds of those reimbursement payments from the Funeral Home Director. Finally, in or about April 2021, HERBERT submitted a fraudulent loan application—on behalf of a fictitious baked goods company he claimed to operate—to induce a bank to issue HERBERT a $20,418 loan pursuant to the federal Paycheck Protection Program that was established in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.