Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo regrets throwing his former top aide and pal Joe Percoco under the bus years ago — after Percoco’s fraud corruption conviction got tossed by the US Supreme Court last week.
“I should have been more vocal in support of Joe,” Cuomo lamented in a posted 30-minute video Thursday titled “The Injustice System.”
He called Percoco’s prosecution “political” and federal prosecutors Preet Bharara and Joon Kim “bad guys.”
Percoco — whom Cuomo once publicly likened to a brother — was found guilty in 2018 of conspiracy to commit “honest services” fraud after pocketing more than $300,000 from executives at two companies doing business with the state.
In his appeal, Percoco maintained that the payments he took in 2014 weren’t bribes because he was on leave from his government job and working for Cuomo’s re-election campaign at the time.
Writing for a unanimous court, Justice Samuel Alito found the jurors in Percoco’s case were given “erroneous” instructions that were “too vague” regarding the federal honest services law that prejudiced the defendant.
The former yop aide has refused to comment since his release from prison.
Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo regrets throwing his trusted confidant Joe Percoco under the bus years ago. Andrew Cuomo/YoutubeOn the day Percoco was sentenced to six years in prison in 2018, Cuomo said in a statement, “Joe Percoco is paying the price for violating the public trust. And it should serve as a warning to anyone who fails to uphold his or her oath as a public servant.”
But in the just-released video statement Cuomo said, “I should have been more vocal at the time.”
He claimed the prosecutors went after Percoco to hurt the three-term ex-governor, who himself resigned in 2021 amid sexual harassment and misconduct accusations despite his denials.
“I also should have been more vocal of Joe because I knew what they were doing … Joe was just collateral damage to them,” Cuomo claimed.
Cuomo’s sister, Madeline, did raise funds for Percoco’s legal defense to appeal of his conviction.
He said at the time he was advised that not commenting was “the best thing that we could do” to keep the Percoco case “out of the headlines.”
Cuomo noted that the Supreme Court ruling overturning the Percoco case was unanimous with the three more liberal justices — Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson — joining the conservative majority.
“Wow,” he said.
Cuomo then segued to his own downfall.
Cuomo lamented in a posted 30-minute video, “I should have been more vocal in support of Joe.” R Umar AbbasiHe has long insisted he was unfairly railroaded.
He resigned in August of 2021 under threat of impeachment after a stinging investigative report conducted by state Attorney Letitia James identified 11 women who claimed they were harassed or mistreated by the ex-governor.
James said she believed the claims and the governor violated state and federal laws, while Cuomo denied wrongdoing.
Cuomo pointed out that James tapped former prosecutor Joon Kim, the ex-top deputy to then-US Attorney Preet Bharara who investigated him, his administration and brought the Percoco fraud case, to spearhead the AG’s harassment probe of him.
He has long maintained that Kim’s selection was improper because he was biased against him.
Percoco was released from custody last month.







