Ex-FDNY chief gets 3 years in prison for taking bribes to fast-track safety inspections

NEW YORK (AP) — A former New York City Fire Department chief was sentenced to three years in prison Wednesday for accepting tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to fast-track fire safety inspections at restaurants, hotels and other city businesses.

Anthony Saccavino, 61, pleaded guilty in January to running the scheme while heading the department’s Bureau of Fire Prevention, which regulates the installation of fire safety and suppression systems in New York City.

With the help of another chief, Brian Cordasco, Saccavino solicited and received $190,000 in bribe payments between 2021 and 2023, prosecutors said.

“Chief Saccavino led a pay-to-play bribery scheme that would offend the sensibilities of every hard-working New Yorker,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement.

A retired firefighter who ran an unsanctioned “expediting” business acted as the intermediary for the more than 30 projects that benefited from the accelerated reviews.

Saccavino was arrested in September alongside Cordasco, who also pleaded guilty and was sentenced in March to 20 months in prison.

Their arrests came days before the criminal indictment of Mayor Eric Adams on bribery charges that included allegations he sped up fire safety inspections at the Turkish consulate in exchange for illegal contributions. Adams has denied wrongdoing.

The case against the mayor, which was later ordered dropped by the Trump administration, was unrelated to the fire chiefs’ bribery scandal.

On top of his prison term, Saccavino was ordered to pay a $150,000 fine and to return $57,000 that he personally pocketed in bribes, prosecutors said.

His attorney did not respond to phone call requesting comment.