Turkey and its powerful, globe-trotting president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has racked up thousands of dollars in luxury goods, first class travel and other lavish perks allegedly funneled to embattled mayor Eric Adams. What did you get in exchange?
Erdogan is accused of building a shiny 36-story glass and steel tower across the street from the United Nations, according to a historic five-count indictment unsealed Thursday by Manhattan prosecutors. turkish house Rising high above the New York City skyline and the East River, the building is a consular exhibit hall that Adams is said to have built in haste despite fire safety concerns.
“September 2021 [a Turkish official] It's time for defendant Eric Adams to pressure the New York City Fire Department to get back at Turkish officials by building Turkey's new consulate, a 36-story skyscraper, in December 2019 without a fire safety inspection. He said he applied pressure to open it in time. “It was a high-profile visit by the President of Türkiye,” the indictment states.
“At that time, this building would have failed FDNY inspection.In exchange for free travel in 2021 and 2022 and travel-related bribes arranged by Turkish authorities, Mr. Adams acted as instructed.
“Due to Mr. Adams's pressure on the FDNY, FDNY officials in charge of the FDNY's fire safety evaluations of skyscrapers were told they would lose their jobs if they did not acquiesce, and after Mr. Adams intervened, opened as requested.”
In 2017, shortly after construction began on the facility, also known as Turkevi Center, President Erdoğan presided over a ceremony at the site with his wife and foreign minister.
“This new building will be a suitable place for a growing country with a growing reputation in all fields,” Erdogan said at the ceremony, according to Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency.
Turkevi House will symbolize “a space worthy of the glory of our country,” he said.
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It was also for the glory of President Erdoğan. According to Sinan Sidian expert on Turkish domestic politics and foreign policy at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
“It was pure vanity on Erdogan’s part,” Sidi told the Post on Thursday. “At the time, there were a lot of questions about how we were able to complete the tests so quickly, and now we know.
“For Erdoğan, it was an honor. Look at what we managed to do in New York too. He wanted a symbol of Turkey's supremacy in the world, and he got it. , and he got it when he wanted it.”
Perkins Eastman, the architectural firm that designed the building, calls it “an amazing addition to New York's skyline.” [which] Supporting U.S. operations in the Republic of Türkiye. ”
The façade is curved in homage to the crescent of the Turkish flag, and the top of Turkey House is shaped like a tulip, Turkey's national flower.
A 2021 report by the Department of Buildings on fire alarm systems, seen by The Post on Thursday, showed a list of fire safety issues that had yet to be fixed to bring the building up to code.
An FDNY spokesperson said in an email to the Post on Thursday that a fire alarm system in the building was approved in March 2023, but did not provide further details other than to say the building was “safe.” Ta.
A person familiar with the building's construction told the Post in 2021 that he believed “there were significant problems with that building.”
Turkey House includes a passport and visa branch, public areas, meeting rooms, a multipurpose prayer room, an auditorium, and several residential units.
Turkish officials regularly hold diplomatic meetings in the building. Last September, President Erdoğan invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Turkey House.
Turkey House was reportedly built by Turkish billionaire Enver Yucel, a construction magnate who also heads BAU Global, an integrated education network that founded Bay Atlantic University and Bahcesehir University.
