Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano is back at work and claiming his innocence one day after he was indicted on federal corruption charges.
Cammarano, who is out on bail, said he has no plans to resign. He gave a brief statement this morning saying he categorically denies all the charges against him.
The 32-year-old mayor is meeting with department heads and performing his normal duties, Cammarano's spokesman said.
Cammarano has been charged with conspiracy to commit extortion. His bail was set at $100,000, which he posted shortly after a federal hearing in Newark yesterday.
The youngest -ever mayor of Hoboken, Cammarano, an attorney, has been in office for just three weeks.
One of his first accomplishments on the job, federal officials said, was taking $25,000 in bribes from a developer.
According to federal officials, when a government witness offered Cammarano thousands of dollars to push through a fictitious high-rise development plan, the new mayor allegedly said, "Great -- and we're going to be friends for a long time."
Hoboken City Council President Dawn Zimmer called yesterday for Cammarano to resign, saying "These are very serious charges against him and it would be extremely difficult for him to continue as mayor. It would be a cloud hanging over him,” NJ.com reported.
Zimmer lost by 161 votes to Cammarano in a runoff election last month.
