Barry Williams for New York Daily News via Getty Images
- Eric Adams hired Alex Spiro — also Elon Musk’s lawyer — to represent him in his criminal case.
- Spiro has been billing the city for a separate civil sexual assault lawsuit against the mayor.
- But taxpayers aren’t paying for the criminal defense bills, a city spokesperson said.
New York City taxpayers aren’t on the hook for the legal bill in Eric Adams’ federal bribery case, a spokesperson for the mayor confirmed to Business Insider.
Adams is represented in the criminal case by Alex Spiro, a former Manhattan prosecutor and one of the highest-profile lawyers in the country, representing the likes of Elon Musk and Alec Baldwin.
Spiro had already been defending Adams in an unrelated civil sexual lawsuit case since April. For that case, Spiro was billing the city for his work — though reportedly charging only $250 per hour instead of the $2,025 per hour rate he’s charged other clients.
But New York City’s coffers aren’t being emptied for Spiro’s work in the criminal case against Adams, according to Fabien Levy, the city’s deputy mayor for communications.
“No, the city is not covering the costs of representation in this matter,” Levy told BI in an email.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have brought five criminal counts against Adams, accusing him of soliciting and accepting bribes from the government of Turkey in the form of luxury travel perks.
Adams pleaded not guilty to the charges in the indictment at an arraignment Friday afternoon, wearing a somber expression while sitting next to a relaxed-looking Spiro.
In remarks to reporters following the court hearing, Spiro mocked the charges as “the airline upgrade corruption case” and said he would file a motion to dismiss — a step that normally takes months to prepare — on Wednesday.
Alex Spiro didn’t immediately return a request for comment from Business Insider on Friday afternoon.