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A former city Department of Buildings supervisor pocketed more than $75,000 in bribes by fast-tracking hundreds of construction deals around the Big Apple, using the dough to fund a lavish lifestyle that included trips to Japan, prosecutors charged Monday.
Jake Udeh, 57, was indicted on bribery and conspiracy charges in Manhattan Supreme Court for allegedly accepting the cash from three separate construction company owners in order to help speed up the approval process for their jobs.
Prosectors said Udeh, who lives in East Stroudsburg, Pa., used his position as a supervisor at the DOB to direct projects to his team of plan examiners for approval in exchange for cash from construction companies — even signing off on some on the jobs himself.
The scheme, which ran between June 2021 to March 2025, also involved three construction company owners — Jih Yeuan Hwang, 50; Anson Tse, 40; Shiming Tam, 70, according to the indictment.
All four defendants pleaded not guilty before Judge April Newbauer and were released as the charges were not bail eligible.
In text exchanges over WhatsApp, Udeh and Hwang were caught discussing one project at 22 Coffey St in Brooklyn, where Hwang allegedly said “5K if we can get it done this week” in a message on April 3, 2024.
Udeh responded a month later, warning Hwang that people were suspicious of his “reassignments from the Borough,” according to the indictment.
The disgraced DOB supervisor eventually turned a blind eye and approved the project in May 2024, after Hwang had allegedly texted him that he would “have the money” after the site was wrapped up.
“Coffey PAA will be filed next week,” Udeh allegedly said in a May 28, 2024 text sent to Hwang.
Prosecutors claim that Udeh accepted more than $75,000 in bribes — including $65,000 from Hwang to cover over 250 expedited projects.
Udeh charged the construction bigwigs between $500 to $1,000 per project and also demanded to have all expenses covered trips to Japan and Paraguay, according to court papers.
Tam and Tse allegedly sent Udeh more than $5,000 individually in bribes, prosecutors said.
Acting Department of Investigations Commissioner Christopher Ryan called for the DOB to audit the jobs signed off by Udeh to ensure safety.
“As alleged, Jake Udeh used his supervisory role at the Department of Buildings to help his co-conspirators leapfrog those abiding by the rules for as little as $500 a project,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement.
His attorney, Nathan Semmel, said that the allegations against Udeh don’t match his client’s personality.
“Mr. Udeh is a husband and father of six with an impeccable personal history, including extensive charitable work for children in his native Nigeria,” Semmel said. “He is highly educated and professionally accomplished. The allegations would be a stark contrast.”
Udeh faces up to 15 years if convicted of bribery in the second degree, a class C felony.
He resigned from his DOB gig in March 2025.
All defendants are due back in court on July 9.
