Speaker Sheldon Silver arrested on corruption charges

NEW YORK (WABC) -- New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was arrested Thursday on public corruption charges and accused of using his position as one of the most powerful men in Albany to obtain millions of dollars masked as legitimate income.

Prosecutors say Silver used the power of his office to solicit more than $6 million in bribes and kickbacks through and doctors and corrupt real estate dealers.

Silver is charged with mail fraud, wire fraud and extortion in the five-count criminal complaint.

"We're disappointed that the prosecutors have chosen to proceed with these meritless criminal charges," Silver's attorneys, Joel Cohen and Steven Molo, said in a statement. "That said, Mr. Silver looks forward to responding to them in court and ultimately his full exoneration."

Silver reportedly made $6 million from two law firms since 2002, including $5.3 million from personal injury firm Weitz & Luxenberg and $700,000 from Goldberg & Iryami, a firm that challenges real-estate assessments.

"There is probable cause to believe Silver obtained about $4 million in payments characterized as attorney referral fees solely through the corrupt use of his official position," the complaint said.

In addition to his $120,000 annual salary for law work at Weitz & Luxenberg, prosecutors allege Silver obtained more than $3 million in corrupt fees meant to induce him to steer $500,000 in state funds to a doctor who referred asbestos cases to the firm. Some of the doctors' research involved asbestos released into the air following the 9/11 attacks.

The complaint alleges Silver never actually performed any legal work for Weitz & Luxenberg, despite $120,000 annual salary.

Prosecutors seized approximately $3.8 million of Silver's money Thursday morning.

They say the $700,000 payments from Goldberg & Iryami were so Silver could use his power "to induce real-estate developers with business before the state to retain and continue to use a real estate law firm controlled by an attorney who previously had worked as Silver's counsel in the Assembly."

Silver failed to list the payments from the firm on his annual financial disclosure filings with the state. The firm is led by 75-year-old Jay Arthur Goldberg, who once served as Silver's counsel.

The 70-year-old Silver was taken into custody around 8 a.m. at the FBI's New York City office. He made a court appearance in the afternoon and was released on $200,000 bond.

The arrest sent shock waves through New York's Capitol as a new legislative session has begun, and it came just a day after Silver shared the stage with Gov. Andrew Cuomo during his State of the State address.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara took over the files of New York's Moreland anti-corruption commission after Cuomo closed it in April. He said in October that investigations into Albany's pay-to-play politics are continuing.

As speaker of the Democrat-controlled Assembly, Silver is one of the most influential people in New York state government. Along with the Senate majority leader and the governor, he plays a major role in creating state budgets, laws and policies in a system long-criticized in Albany as "three men in a room."

Silver has gone toe-to-toe with five New York governors - from the late Mario Cuomo to his son Andrew Cuomo - since early 1994, when he was selected Assembly speaker to replace the ailing Saul Welprin.

Silver was first elected to the Assembly in 1976, representing a district on Manhattan's Lower East Side, where he was born and still lives with his wife, Rosa.

A graduate of Brooklyn Law School and a practicing attorney, Silver has championed liberal causes in the Legislature, where he has used his position as a powerbroker to support teachers, trial lawyers and civil service unions.

But he has also seen more than his share of corruption and scandal in his chamber. Several Assembly members have been hit in recent years with criminal charges ranging from taking bribes to using campaign funds for personal expenses.

In 2003, Silver's then-counsel, Michael Boxley, was convicted of sexual misconduct. Nine years later, Silver handled a confidential settlement of $103,000 in public funds for two women who said they were sexually harassed by their boss, then-Assemblyman Vito Lopez of Brooklyn. After the details of the settlement went public, the Assembly speaker was criticized for his role. Silver later said the case should have been handled by the ethics committee.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)