FDNY chief Brian Cordasco pleads guilty to receiving bribes to fast track building inspections

A retired FDNY chief accused of fast-tracking information inspections for thousands of dollars successful off-the-books kickbacks pleaded blameworthy to 5 years successful national situation Tuesday, officials said. 

Chief Brian Cordasco, 49, volition besides person to cough up $57,000 successful ill-gotten gains from the bribery scam, which prosecutors said earned him and Chief  Anthony Saccavino much than $190,000 successful amerciable payoffs.

The 2 retired chiefs were charged with bribery, ligament fraud, lying to the FBI, and related charges connected Sept. 16.

“Brian Cordasco abused the public’s spot repeatedly by selling entree to the Bureau of Fire Prevention’s services successful a pay-to-play bribery scheme,” Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York said successful a statement. “Today’s blameworthy plea should nonstop a connection that SDNY is committed to holding our nationalist officials accountable erstwhile they edifice to corruption.”

The 2 chiefs — who oversaw information inspections for ample metropolis buildings and projects arsenic the caput of the FDNY’s Bureau of Fire Prevention — exploited a backlog of inspections during the archetypal months of the COVID-19 pandemic and agreed to bump paying developers to the apical of the line.

Brian Cordasco, left, and Anthony Saccavino, 2 erstwhile NYFD chiefs arrested Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, connected charges that they solicited tens of thousands of dollars successful bribes to supply preferential attraction successful the department’s occurrence prevention bureau. (Fire Department of the City of New York via AP)

The pivotal FDNY bureau is liable for overseeing and approving the installation of occurrence information and suppression systems successful commercialized and residential buildings passim the metropolis and making definite they are successful compliance with occurrence information regulations.

A failed oregon delayed inspection by the BFP could forestall a gathering from being opened to the public, officials said.

The 2 ran the scam with retired Firefighter Henry Santiago from 2021 done past year, officials said. The kickbacks added to Saccavino’s $263,478 wage successful 2023 and Cordasco’s $257,296 yearly take-home pay, prosecutors said. 

As they carried retired their scam, Cordasco lied to different BFP members to warrant different improper expediting requests, national prosecutors said. He besides lied to instrumentality enforcement erstwhile interviewed astir his engagement successful the scheme.

Concerns of the bribe taking were archetypal made by FDNY administrators to the city’s Department of Investigation, which began a probe that soon included the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s office.

“This erstwhile main of the Bureau of Fire Prevention chose to disregard his work to the metropolis and its taxpayers erstwhile helium took thousands of dollars successful bribes successful speech for expediting definite occurrence reviews and inspections,” DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber added.

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, speaks during a quality league astatine his bureau Thursday, Sep. 26, 2024. (Jeff Bachner/New York Daily News)

The 2 chiefs were placed connected modified duty and were not allowed to instrumentality portion successful immoderate inspections successful February, astir the aforesaid clip the FBI raided their homes for evidence. The 2 had retired from the FDNY erstwhile criminal charges were filed against them successful September.

Cordasco pleaded blameworthy to 1 number of conspiracy to solicit and person a bribe, which carries a maximum condemnation of 5 years successful prison, officials said. He’ll beryllium sentenced connected Feb. 19.

Saccavino maintains his innocence and has not indicated that helium plans to plead out.

The lawsuit was brought successful the leadup to the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s lawsuit against Mayor Adams, which partially alleges helium accepted bribes from the Turkish authorities to circumvent occurrence information checks astatine Turkey’s consulate successful Manhattan.

The feds person not drawn a enactment betwixt the 2 cases.