State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman was friendly with social-services honcho William Rapfogel before launching a criminal probe of him, records show.
Schniederman appointed Rapfogel, the former longtime CEO of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, to serve on his 32-member advisory panel on nonprofit revitalization in 2011.
Met Council also issued a press release lauding Schneiderman’s visit to the agency that same year to help package kosher food for Passover.
Rapfogel and Schneiderman are both quoted in the agency’s release touting the food-pantry services.
Before his election to AG, Schneiderman was a state senator and one of a bevy of politicians working with Met Council.
An ethics expert concluded their past relationship does not constitute a current conflict of interest.
“There’s no reason to believe he would soft-pedal the investigation because he once put Rapfogel on an advisory council,” said NYU Law Professor Stephen Gillers.
Schneiderman’s office said the criminal probe of Rapfogel — who is accused of pocketing funds and directing campaign contributions to favored pols in a kickback scheme — will be conducted without fear or favor.
“The attorney general is deeply concerned about any wrongdoing that may have occurred and will follow the evidence wherever it leads,” said Schneiderman spokesman Damien LaVera.
He defended the AG’s prior appointment of Rapfogel to an advisory panel on nonprofits.
“Our office asked for input from the Met Council and roughly 30 other large charitable organizations as we worked to reform New York’s charities laws for the first time in more than 40 years,” LaVera said.