Paterson City Council Member And Former City Council President Pleads Guilty To Agreeing To Accept And Accepting Bribes

NEWARK, N.J. – A Paterson City Council member and former council president today admitted accepting bribes from a purported developer in exchange for his official help, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Anthony Davis, 50, of Paterson, New Jersey, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of attempting to obstruct, delay and affect interstate commerce by extortion under color of official right.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

On April 20, 2012, Davis accepted $5,000 in cash from an individual who was cooperating with federal authorities and who purported to be an out-of-state real estate developer. Davis accepted the bribe in exchange for his official action as Paterson City Council president to foster the developer’s business interests in Paterson. Between July 6, 2012, and July 25, 2012, Davis had meetings with the developer, during which Davis discussed the possibility of accepting additional money from the developer in exchange for a letter from Davis to the developer’s lender indicating that the Paterson City Council supported the developer with respect to certain business endeavors in Paterson. On July 25, 2012, Davis agreed to accept and accepted $5,000 in cash from the developer in exchange for such a letter.    

The extortion count to which Davis pleaded guilty is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of the greater of $250,000 or twice the gross pecuniary loss or gain from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for March 18, 2015.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division.

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Defense counsel: Randy Davenport Esq., Piscataway, N.J.    

Davis, Anthony Information