Happy Monday in New York City, where the conga line of indicted aides and friends of Eric Adams just gained a new member.
The newbie of the week is Zhan Petrosyants, a restaurateur and longtime friend of Mayor Adams. Zhan, who goes by Johnny, ran Osteria la Baia on West 52nd Street — one of the “nightlife mayor’s” favorite late-night spots — and developed a close relationship with Adams over the many years of his devoted patronage.
Petrosyants was indicted last Wednesday on charges that he submitted tens of millions of dollars in fraudulent auto insurance and health care claims over a period from 2018 to 2023, a relatively common scheme that takes advantage of the city’s “no-fault” insurance law. Johnny and his twin brother Robert pled guilty to running a very similar check-cashing scheme in 2014, shortly before growing close to Eric Adams.
This week, news broke that Petrosyants and his co-conspirators moved money through a real finance company, Finance Vision Capital Group II, which was owned and operated by Adams’ good friend and former chief of staff Frank Carrone during the time of the alleged fraud.
Carrone has denied any knowledge of wrongdoing and claimed he parted ways with Finance Vision when he joined the Adams administration in 2022.
“As Frank and Finance Vision have long maintained, they are victims of this fraud, which cost them millions of dollars,” Carone’s lawyers said in a statement. “Indeed, as the indictment makes clear, funds from Financial Vision often did not reach the doctors they were intended for but were instead stolen.”
Despite his claims of innocence, Carrone has faced past legal scrutiny for his participation in this scheme. Last year, GEICO, one of the insurance companies defrauded out of millions of dollars by Petrosyants, sued Financial Vision on charges almost identical to the ones brought against Petrosyants last week. GEICO claims that Carrone and Financial Vision knowingly submitted fraudulent insurance claims signed by real doctors. The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed sum.
If Carrone ends up getting charged, there will officially be enough indicted members of Adams’ circle to fill a party boat!
The income of rent-regulated apartment landlords rose 6.2% between 2023 and 2024, the third year of an increase, as Mayor Mamdani continues to fight for a rent freeze.
A baby was born midair on a commercial flight en route from Kingston, Jamaica, to John F. Kennedy International Airport on Saturday. The delivery proceeded without complications.
A new bill, currently in the state Senate, would require the MTA to disclose bedbug infestations on its trains and buses within 24 hours of discovery.
President Donald Trump elevated Todd Blanche on Thursday from deputy attorney general to acting U.S. attorney general. Blanche was a Brooklyn Law School grad.
A lithium-ion battery ignited on the ground floor of the Williamsburg Brooklyn Public Library branch, filling the space with smoke on Saturday. The blaze was extinguished without structural damage or injuries.
The newly restored Field 9 at the Prospect Park Parade Ground formally opened for the season with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
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Our World In Photos
Photo: Adam Gray/AP
MANHATTAN — Broad interpretations for Easter bonnets would be expected in NYC, as here we see a Medusa theme: Viola Emerson, 17, poses for a photograph during the Easter Bonnet Parade on Fifth Avenue, Sunday, April 5, 2026, in New York.
For more pictures like this, see Our World in Photos.
Is your phone spying on you? Nah, it doesn’t have to
A phone’s apps track its user on the subway. Image generated using Nano Banana 2
You’re chatting with a friend about which country you’ll flee to if things get worse under President Donald Trump — Canada, Portugal, New Zealand — or you casually mention needing new running shoes, or you joke about wanting one of those fancy sous vide gadgets for the kitchen.
Hours later, or sometimes minutes, an ad for exactly that thing pops up on your Instagram feed, your Google search results or while you’re doom‑scrolling in bed.
And you wonder: Is my phone spying on me? Has the microphone been secretly recording my every word? Is the device lighting up on my nightstand somehow reading my mind?
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The Mini
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Cartoon Sketchbook
By Dave Whamond
For the Road
Earth Day celebration: As part of Earth Day celebrations, the Department of Transportation will close streets off to cars, creating pedestrian-only throughways on Saturday, April 25. The same day, Citi Bike will offer one-day passes for unlimited 30-minute rides. Learn more about the open streets in Brooklyn and other events for Earth Day.
Happy Birthday to “Ant-Man” star Paul Rudd!
On This Day in 1926, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Indications point toward a reversion to old baseball tactics.”
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