US Attorney: 70 arrests highlight corruption in housing authority

NEW YORK – In announcing 70 arrests, a federal prosecutor said Tuesday that the largest public housing authority in the nation was infested by a “classic pay-to-play” culture of corruption that dispensed repair jobs valued at under $10,000 to contractors willing to pay bribes.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams told a news conference that the corruption was so widespread that it affected nearly a third of the 335 housing developments citywide where one in 17 New Yorkers lived.

Bribery and extortion charges led to a roundup of current and former employees of the New York City

Housing Authority that represented the largest singleday bribery takedown in the history of the U.S. Justice Department, Williams said.

“The corruption we’ve alleged infected every corner of the city,” he said. The defendants were arrested in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and North Carolina.

Firefighter in iconic photo with Bush after 9/11 attacks dies at 91

Bob Beckwith, a retired New York City firefighter who was captured in a famous photo standing next to President George W. Bush in the days after the Sept. 11 attacks in New York City, has died. He was 91.

His wife, Barbara Beckwith, said he had cancer and died Sunday night in hospice care, The Associated Press reported.

When terrorists attacked the World Trade Center, Beckwith was 69 and had been retired for seven years following a 30-year career from Ladder Company 164 in Queens. Nonetheless, he joined current in rushing to ground zero to help with the search and rescue efforts.

For those activities, Beckwith became known as a hero. He stood with Bush as the president gave a speech to the first responders who had been working nonstop in the hours and days after the hijacked planes destroyed the Twin Towers.

From wire reports