Mr Silver, 70, is seen as one of the most powerful politicians in New York and he earns around $121,000 a year from his post. The criminal complaint against him says there is 'probable cause to believe' that he received $4m in payments 'characterized as attorney referral fees solely through the corrupt use of his official position'. 

New York law firm

But prosecutors say that they cannot find evidence that he did any work for New York law firm Weitz & Luxenberg even though he reported earnings of $650,000 for legal work, including work done for that firm. The prosecutors say that Mr Silver claimed to have referred more than 100 clients to the practice - but that, when they contacted ten of them, none of them knew him or knew of any connection between them and him. Source: ABA