Andrew Cuomo is demanding the Albany sheriff who filed charges against him for allegedly groping an aide “preserve all records” from the investigation — while the lawman slammed the ex-governor’s camp as “bullies.”
In a tweet Saturday, Cuomo reproduced a letter sent from his attorney Rita Glavin to Sheriff Craig Apple — demanding Apple “preserve all records” from the investigation which lead to the misdemeanor criminal complaint filed this week.
Glavin outlined records to be kept including correspondence with Brittany Commisso, the former executive assistant who claims Cuomo groped her in the Executive Mansion.
The lawyer is also seeking correspondence from Commisso’s estranged husband Frank Commisso, Jr., and his father, a former Albany County Democratic Majority Leader, as well as all records of correspondence with the press.
“They’re bullies,” said Apple in an interview with The Post Saturday. “But we expected this.”
Cuomo, 63, is accused of “forcibly” putting his hand under Commisso’s blouse and grabbing her in the Dec. 7 incident. Although the name of the alleged victim was redacted, a lawyer for Brittany Commisso confirmed her identity.
A summons has been issued to Cuomo to appear at Albany City Court on Nov. 17, according to the Albany County Sheriff’s Office and the Albany County District Attorney’s Office.
“If he doesn’t show up the stakes will be raised,” Apple said. “They’re bullies. They keep doing what they do, and we’re going to continue to move forward with our investigation. People can see through that smoke screen. We’ve tried to keep this from being a circus but they’ve turned it into a circus.”
The alleged evidence against Cuom includes a text message from Cuomo’s cellphone, state police aviation records for Dec. 7 and news reports of a press conference that day, state police BlackBerry PIN messages, swipe card records from the state Capitol, and Commisso’s testimony to the Attorney General’s Office.
“What occurred here was a clear abuse of power by Sheriff Apple and we plan to get to the bottom of it,” said Cuomo’s spokesman Richard Azzopardi in a comment tweeted by the former governor on his Twitter page.