Plea Deal Reached in Manhattan Supreme Court
Joseph and Anthony Livreri, the co-owners of Aldo in Ozone Park, pleaded guilty on Wednesday in Manhattan Supreme Court to conspiracy and bribery charges. The brothers admitted to paying $4,000 to Eric Ulrich, the former advisor to Mayor Eric Adams and the city’s Commissioner of the Department of Buildings (DOB), to circumvent code enforcement after one of their properties, the Fortunato Brothers Bakery, was shuttered following a fire in 2022.
The guilty plea arrives just two weeks before the brothers were scheduled to face trial alongside Ulrich, who remains a defendant in a sprawling corruption case. According to the plea agreement reported by the News Tribune, the Livreri brothers have committed to pleading the Fifth Amendment if called to testify against Ulrich, effectively opting out of cooperating with prosecutors in the ongoing trial against the former commissioner.
The Scope of Alleged Corruption
The bribery charges confirmed this week represent only a portion of the original indictment brought against the brothers in September 2023. Prosecutors had initially alleged a wider pattern of misconduct, including payments intended to expedite health inspections at their pizza parlor following multiple violations and attempts to remove licensing barriers for their associate, Michael Mazzio, to secure city towing contracts during weather emergencies.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg stated that the defendants actively leveraged their relationship with city officials to secure personal financial advantages, including jobs for relatives and the bypassing of critical building safety codes. Nadia Shihata, chief of the city’s Department of Investigations, characterized the conduct as “quintessential public corruption,” noting that the inquiry into the Adams administration involved collaborative efforts between her department, Bragg’s office, and federal investigators.
Institutional Stakes and Next Steps
The case highlights long-standing concerns regarding the integrity of municipal oversight in New York City. Charging documents revealed deep ties between the defendants and the former mayoral administration, including campaign fundraising efforts and direct meetings with the then-incoming mayor at the brothers’ pizzeria in December 2021. Ulrich, who has pleaded not guilty to charges across five indictments, is accused of abusing his authority across multiple public roles, including his time as a city council member and his tenure as the DOB commissioner.
Ulrich’s trial is scheduled to commence on September 28. He has publicly acknowledged struggles with gambling and alcohol, though he denies the allegations that he accepted $150,000 in bribes, luxury items, and sports tickets in exchange for official favors. The Livreri brothers are expected to be sentenced on December 10.