The arrest of a former top aide on corruption charges was “an emotional situation” that was “very, very disappointing” for Gov. Cuomo, he said Wednesday.

Without mentioning Joseph Percoco by name, Cuomo referred to him as “a friend of mine for many, many years — actually had been a friend of my father’s for many, many years.”

“I try not to be defensive and this is somewhat of an emotional situation for me, because more than on a personal level, it is very, very disappointing for me,” Cuomo told reporters in Syracuse.

“You know someone for a long period of time and you trust them, and then — according to the complaint, at least — they violate the public trust, which has been critical for me and my father before me.”

Last year, Cuomo likened Percoco to “my father’s third son, who sometimes I think he loved the most,” during the funeral of his dad, Mario Cuomo, who served as New York governor from 1983 through 1994.

Percoco is charged with taking more than $315,000 in payoffs from firms involved in Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion revitalization project.