Feds eye Brooklyn Sen. John Sampson in corruption probe
Real estate agent Edul Ahmad, guilty of mortgage fraud, told federal authorities about payments he made to Sampson after the powerful Democrat claimed he needed money, sources said.
Comments (2)By Glenn Blain AND John Marzulli / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Friday, January 4, 2013, 8:45 PM
Jeanne Noonan/New York Daily News
New York Senate Democratic Majority Leader John Sampson is being investigated by the feds for allegedly accepting funds from guilty mortgage fraud schemer Edul Ahmad.
Related Stories
- A smaller office and crummy parking space await disgraced Brooklyn Assemblyman Vito Lopez when he returns to Albany
- Amid investigations, Vito Lopez parties on
- House ethics panel finds Queens congressman Meeks ‘inadvertently’ failed to reveal loan
- Jesse Jackson Jr. Resigns From Congress
The feds are investigating Brooklyn Sen. John Sampson for allegedly accepting money from a shady broker, sources told the Daily News.
The real estate agent, Edul Ahmad, started singing to the feds before he even pleaded guilty in October to a $14 million mortgage fraud scheme, sources said. He faces more than 10 years in prison and $15 million in fines and restitution.
Ahmad told the feds about payments he made to Sampson after the powerful Democrat claimed he needed money, sources said. It is unclear if the money was couched as a gift or a loan, or whether Sampson repaid Ahmad.
"We are not making any statement whatsoever on that issue at all," said Sampson's spokesman.
Todd Maisel/New York Daily News
Edul Ahmad of Queens, (PICTURED), was found guilty of mortgage fraud in Brooklyn Federal Court. Ahmad told the feds about payments he made to Sampson after the powerful Democrat claimed he needed money, sources said.
According to Board of Election records, Sampson reported $2,000 in donations from Ahmad in 2006 and 2007.
Ahmad's lawyer Steven Kartagener declined comment.
The real estate agent is also embroiled in the federal investigation over a secret $40,000 zero-interest loan he made to Congressman Gregory Meeks.
Sampson had been the Democratic Conference leader for the past two years before he was dumped in favor of Yonkers Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins last month. There had been whispers that Sampson was under investigation, according to a Democratic insider.
"This is why the conference got rid of him," the insider said. "There was always another shoe that was ready to drop."
Ahmad, a former cop in Guyana and naturalized U.S. citizen, pleaded guilty in October to an unrelated $14 million mortgage fraud scheme in which straw buyers submitted falsified applications to money lenders.
Ahmad's Facebook page still depicts him socializing with Sampson and other former top Democratic elected officials.
The House Ethics Committee concluded its probe into Ahmad's secret $40,000 loan to Meeks, calling the congressman's failure to disclose the loan for two years "inadvertent."
Meeks told The News he is "shocked" to hear Ahmad is cooperating with the government, and predicted it will have no bearing on him.
"There's absolutely nothing Mr. Ahmad could do or say that would hurt me," Meeks said, adding that he has not spoken to him in "years."
