RED HOOK — State Sen. Velmanette Montgomery was one of seven elected officials caught on tape in a federal corruption probe, according to court documents.
Montgomery, a Democrat who represents District 25, was secretly recorded and photographed in the Jamaica, Queens, home of disgraced State Sen. Shirley Huntley, who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges and was cooperating with the FBI in an ongoing probe. Five other state senators, a city councilman and two political operatives were also named in the probe.
Montgomery, 71, has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
“We have every confidence that the senator we work for is an honorable woman,” said an aide to Montgomery at her office on Wednesday afternoon.
The officials' names were released Wednesday when a pre-sentencing document filed by Huntley's lawyer was unsealed by a Brooklyn Federal Court judge.
It also named state Sens. Eric Adams, Malcolm Smith, John Sampson, Ruth Hassell-Thompson, and Jose Peralta; City Councilman Ruben Wills and operatives Melvin Lowe and Curtis Taylor.
Elected to the Senate in 1984, Montgomery’s district includes Fort Greene, Boerum Hill, Red Hook, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Sunset Park, Gowanus and Park Slope.
Residents cautioned against rushing to judgment until all the details come to light.
“If it is true.. it’s terribly, terribly disappointing to the community,” said John McGettrick, head of the Red Hook Civic Association.
“The public deserves to be represented by officials with ethics that are beyond reproach. Anything less shakes the foundation of our government,” said Community Board 6 District Manager Craig Hammerman, in an email.
“Remember too that everyone is innocent until they are proven guilty," he continued. "Rushing to judgment and trials in the court of public opinion sully our democracy. This isn't a popularity contest. People's lives and livelihoods are at stake.”
