Tony Herbert, an aide in the administration of former New York City Mayor Eric Adams, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly accepting thousands of dollars in bribes and kickbacks. Federal prosecutors charged Herbert with “bribery in connection with two separate pay-to-play schemes,” ABC News noted. NEWS: Former Eric Adams aide and community advocate Tony Herbert has been arrested and charged in an SDNY indictment with taking bribes and kickbacks, along with several fraud offenses. He’s set to appear in court later today. pic.twitter.com/DiO5RwNRRO — Molly Crane-Newman (@molcranenewman) January 13, 2026 ABC News has more: Herbert was arrested Tuesday morning and entered a not guilty plea at his arraignment. He received a $50,000 recognizance bond and is due back in court on Jan. 30. The charges against Herbert follow the conviction of former Adams aide Mohamed Bahi in an illegal donations scheme. He was sentenced to three years’ probation. Ingrid Lewis-Martin, Adams’ chief advisor, was indicted on bribery charges and that case is ongoing. Adams was indicted in 2024 on federal corruption charges, to which he pleaded not guilty. His case was dismissed in April and he later dropped his reelection bid. In Herbert’s first alleged scheme, the indictment said he solicited and received $11,000 in cash from a security company executive in exchange for pressuring other city officials to give the company security contracts at public housing projects. In the second, the indictment alleges Herbert took $5,000 in kickbacks from the director of a funeral home in exchange for approving financial assistance for burial services for low-income families. 'BLATANT' GREEDFeds say former community affairs honcho under Mayor Adams used City Hall job to fatten wallet https://t.co/G9dOzXQmyr pic.twitter.com/WPD1QZ9Y4v — New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) January 14, 2026 CBS News noted: Herbert is also accused of submitting a fraudulent loan application on behalf of a fake baked goods company to get a $20,000 loan from the Federal Paycheck Protection Program established during the COVID-19 pandemic. “New Yorkers deserve honest and competent public officials,” said Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. “As alleged, at a time when Anthony Herbert was serving as City Hall’s liaison to the City’s public housing residents, he engaged in blatant pay-to-play schemes to enrich himself. The women and men of the Southern District of New York are committed to holding accountable government officials who abuse their positions of trust to benefit themselves.” Herbert told CBS News New York that he was just doing his job and that he had longtime relationships with the people involved. Outside court, he said, “I didn’t do anything wrong,” later adding, “I didn’t do none of that.” “He’s entered a plea of not guilty and we’re just gonna let the case play out in court,” Herbert’s attorney said. CBS New York shared video coverage: