L.I. witness who dished dirt on Blaz finally done
A CROOKED restaurateur finished his marathon testimony Thursday in a sprawling Long Island corruption trial that painted Mayor de Blasio as a pol who kept his hand out and his ears closed.
Since mid-March, restaurant owner Harendra Singh has been detailing his alleged pay-to-play efforts with public officials in Nassau County and New York City as part of a cooperation deal he made with federal prosecutors. Former Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto, Ex-Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano and his wife are charged — but Singh, a de Blasio donor, also testified about his City Hall dealings and campaign contribution shenanigans.
At one point in his 12 days in the hot seat, Singh said he once told de Blasio he’d have to resort to illegal straw donors. De Blasio, according to Singh, responded “Do whatever you got to do, but I don’t want to know.” De Blasio has not been charged and denied making the comments.
Meanwhile, lawyers for Mangano and Venditto did their best on cross examination to characterize Singh, 59, as a loathsome liar. Early on, Venditto’s lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, considered making de Blasio testify, but after court Thursday it appeared he was leaning against calling Hizzoner.