Campaign Finance Case: Charges Dropped for Defendant

On Tuesday, one of the six people accused in a campaign finance scheme involving Mayor Eric Adams's contributors had their charges dismissed. Ronald Peek, 66, was part of a group indicted last July for allegedly funneling money to Adams's campaign through straw donors between 2020 and 2021. Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Zachary Weintraub agreed to drop the charges against Peek, citing his lack of criminal history and government service in New York and Florida. Peek’s lawyer, Ian Niles, submitted a motion for dismissal on May 28. Niles argued that Peek had no intent to break the law and gained nothing from the alleged scheme. Peek was not present at the hearing, which Judge Althea Drysdale approved.

Before his involvement in this case, Peek served under Governor Mario Cuomo in New York and worked with several Florida governors, including Jeb Bush. He also made history as the first African-American firefighter in Troy, New York, but left the department after a severe ankle injury in 1994 or 1995. Four other defendants have pleaded guilty to reduced charges. Millicent Redick, a 78-year-old retired accountant from Harlem, is the only defendant with an open case. None of the six accused worked for Adams's campaign, which has not been accused of wrongdoing. The indictment alleged that Peek advised others on structuring contributions and avoiding detection by the Campaign Finance Board (CFB). He discussed the scheme with Shamsuddin Riza over phone calls in July 2021. Later that month, he allegedly told Riza about giving retired NYPD Inspector Dwayne Montgomery checks to contribute to the campaign.

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