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Inside the Turkish tower in NYC at the center of Mayor Eric Adams’ indictment

inside-the-turkish-tower-in-nyc-at-the-center-of-mayor-eric-adams’-indictment
Inside the Turkish tower in NYC at the center of Mayor Eric Adams’ indictment

What did Turkey and its powerful, globetrotting president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan get in return for the thousands of dollars in luxury, first-class travel, other lavish perks allegedly funneled to embattled Mayor Eric Adams?

According to the historic, five-count indictment unsealed by Manhattan prosecutors Thursday, Erdoğan scored a glossy, 36-story glass and steel tower across from the United Nations called the Turkish House that soars over the NYC skyline and the East River — a consular showplace allegedly fast-tracked by Adams despite fire safety concerns.

“In Sept. 2021 [a Turkish official] told Eric Adams, the defendant, that it was his turn to repay the Turkish official by pressuring the New York City Fire Department to facilitate the opening of a new Turkish consular building — a 36-story skyscraper — without a fire inspection, in time for a high profile visit by Turkey’s president,” the indictment read.

Mayor Adams speaking outside Gracie Mansion after he was hit with corruption charges on Sept. 26, 2024.

Mayor Adams speaking outside Gracie Mansion after he was hit with corruption charges on Sept. 26, 2024. Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Turkish Consulate General in New York

Adams was allegedly given gifts from Turkey in exchange for fast-tracking the opening of the “Turkish House” in Manhattan. Facebook Turkish Consulate General in New York

“At the time, the building would have failed an FDNY inspection. In exchange for free travel and travel-related bribes in 2021 and 2022 arranged by the Turkish official, Adams did as instructed.

“Because of Adams’ pressure on the FDNY, the FDNY official responsible for the FDNY’s assessment of the skyscraper’s fire safety was told he would lose his job if he failed to acquiesce, and after Adams intervened, the skyscraper was opened as requested.”

In 2017, just after construction began on what is also called the Turkevi Center, Erdogan presided over a ceremony at the site with his wife and his foreign minister.

Mayor-elect Adams meeting with Consul General Reyhan Özgür outside of Turkish House in 2021.

Mayor-elect Adams meeting with Consul General Reyhan Özgür outside of Turkish House in 2021. X/Turkish Consulate in NY

Adams receiving a tour of the new building.

Adams receiving a tour of the new building. X/Turkish Consulate in NY

“This new building will be a place worthy of our growing and developing country whose reputation is increasing in every field,” Erdogan said at the ceremony, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency.

Turkevi House, he said, would symbolize a “space worthy of our country’s glory.”


Stay updated with the New York Post’s coverage of Mayor Eric Adams’ indictment


It was for Erdogan’s glory as well, according to Sinan Ciddi, an expert on Turkish domestic politics and foreign policy at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Adams allegedly pressued the FDNY to get the Turkish House open without a fire inspection.

Adams allegedly pressued the FDNY to get the Turkish House open without a fire inspection. X/Turkish Consulate in NY

The 36-story building is right next to the United Nations building.

The 36-story building is right next to the United Nations building. X/Turkish Consulate in NY

“It was a total vanity project for Erdogan,” Ciddi told The Post Thursday. “There were all sorts of questions at the time about how they got those inspections done so quickly and now we know.

“For Erdogan it was a prestige thing – like look at what we manage to do even in NYC.  He wanted a symbol of Turkey’s ascendancy 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 “a stunning addition to New York’s skyline [which] supports the Republic of Turkey’s US operations.”

Adams at the Turkish House in 2023.

Adams at the Turkish House in 2023.

Adams speaking at the Turkish House.

Adams speaking at the Turkish House.

The facade is curved in a homage to the crescent on the Turkish flag and the top of Turkish House is shaped like a tulip, the national flower of Turkey.

A 2021 report about the fire alarm system by the Dept. of Buildings viewed by The Post Thursday indicated a list of fire safety issues had still not been fixed to bring the building up to code.

A spokeswoman for the FDNY emailed The Post Thursday and said the 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.”

US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams speaking about the corruption charges against Mayor Adams on Sept. 26, 2024.

US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams speaking about the corruption charges against Mayor Adams on Sept. 26, 2024. AFP via Getty Images

Federal agents removing documents from Gracie Mansion during a raid on Sept. 26, 2024.

Federal agents removing documents from Gracie Mansion during a raid on Sept. 26, 2024. Robert Miller

A source familiar with the building’s construction told The Post that in 2021 he believed “there were significant problems with that building.”

Turkish House includes a passport and visa branch office, public areas, conference rooms, a multi-purpose prayer room, and auditorium as well as some residential units.

Turkish officials regularly hold diplomatic meetings in the building. Last September Erdogan invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Turkish House.

Turkish House was reportedly built by the Turkish billionaire Enver Yucel, a construction tycoon who doubles as the head of BAU Global, the umbrella education network which founded Bay Atlantic and Bahcesehir universities.

Among the Turks that seemed to directly benefit from Adams was former Turkish Airlines executive Cenk Ocal. He was ultimately named to Adams’ transition team after he became mayor in 2022 and Ocal eventually became Adams’ official liaison to the Turkish community.

Last November, on the same day the feds raided the house of Adams’ top fundraiser, Brianna Suggs, they also raided the homes of City Hall staffer Rana Abbasova, director of protocol in the Office for International Affairs, as well as Ocal’s home. Ocal was not named in the indictment against Adams.

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