Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Tony and Gina Argento with bribery and conspiracy for allegedly conspiring with Ingrid Lewis-Martin to influence the Department of Transportation's McGuinness Boulevard bike lane redesign. Lewis-Martin allegedly exchanged access, information, and benefits — including a speaking role on a television show filmed at Broadway Stages — for efforts to alter DOT's approved plan. The Argentos opposed removal of vehicle lanes that would affect their Broadway Stages facility. Lewis-Martin allegedly used a City Hall employee and urged Community Board 1 members to act in the Argentos' interests. The Argentos and Lewis-Martin turned themselves in to prosecutors.
Lewis-Martin "conspired with Gina Argento, Tony Argento, and Broadway Stages to push changes to DOT's approved bike lane redesign of McGuinness Boulevard," court documents state, in exchange for cash and other benefits - like an appearance on a TV show filmed at Broadway Stages. The siblings turned themselves in at the Manhattan D.A.'s office on Thursday morning, along with Lewis-Martin and several other defendants of other bribery schemes.
Starting in 2022, a year after the city began its efforts to redesign McGuinness Boulevard in response to the hit-and-run death of public school teacher Matt Jensen, Lewis-Martin was in regular contact with the Argentos, court documents state. Working with an unnamed City Hall employee, Lewis-Martin allegedly insisted she be part of any DOT meetings regarding the McGuinness project, and had the City Hall employee share details of the DOT's plan with the Argentos - and convey their concerns with DOT.
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