NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) – Gov. Andrew Cuomo could face a federal investigation
over his handling of an anti-corruption committee.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara has reportedly
warned Cuomo about having contact with former members of the now-defunct Moreland Commission after some voiced their support
for the governor’s handling of the anti-corruption panel, WCBS 880’s Paul Murnane reported.
According to a letter from prosecutors, Baharara is threatening to investigate Cuomo’s office for obstruction
of justice and witness tampering, the New York Times reported. Bharara is reportedly looking into whether the Cuomo administration
put pressure on commission members to make public statements defending the governor.
“There
are certain conversations you can always have, but if they are trying to improperly have an impact on an investigation, well
that could be an area of interest for the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” CBS News legal analyst Jack Ford told Murnane.
Sources told CBS 2 Cuomo’s recent public statements about the commission angered Bharara, such as a response
to a demand from Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino for a special prosecutor to look into the possible Moreland
Commission interference in which Cuomo said “That’s entertaining. Ha ha ha.”
That
prompted the U.S. Attorney’s Office to send warning letters to members of the commission, letters that could also be
taken as a warning to Cuomo and his staff, CBS 2 Political Reporter Marcia Kramer reported.
“To
the extent anyone attempts to influence or tamper with a witness’s recollection of events relevant to our investigation,
including the recollection of a commissioner or one of the commission’s employees, ” Bharara’s office wrote.
” . . . We must consider whether such actions constitute obstruction of justice or tampering with witnesses that violate
federal law. “
