Hoboken Sandy-aid investigation closed

Federal prosecutors have closed an investigation into claims that officials in Gov. Christie's administration threatened to withhold Hurricane Sandy relief money from Hoboken if the mayor did not approve a private redevelopment deal.

In a letter dated Friday, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Murphy said prosecutors and the FBI had investigated the allegations.

"Based on the evidence developed during the investigation and our review of the applicable law, we have concluded that no further action is warranted in this matter," they wrote. "Accordingly, the investigation of those allegations has been closed."

The allegations date to January 2014, when, in the wake of the George Washington Bridge lane-closure scandal, Mayor Dawn Zimmer claimed she had been pressured by top Christie officials to approve a private redevelopment deal in her city.

During an appearance that month on a national cable news show, Zimmer said that Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno had "pulled me aside in a parking lot" during a 2013 visit to Hoboken and made clear that the deal was tied to Sandy funding.

Zimmer said that Guadagno told her, "If you tell anyone, I'll deny it."

On Friday, Bill Maderer, a lawyer for Guadagno, said the U.S. attorney's letter "speaks for itself."

Zimmer also had accused Richard Constable, the former community affairs commissioner, and Marc Ferzan, the former executive director of the Governor's Office of Recovery and Rebuilding, of pressuring her to approve the deal.

The developer involved in the deal had been represented by the law firm of David Samson, an ally of Christie's and then the chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

On Friday, Zimmer stood behind her account, which she said was "corroborated by substantial additional evidence," citing her diary entries and conversations with multiple people on the day she said her run-in with Guadagno occurred.

Zimmer said it was the job of prosecutors to determine whether facts "constitute a criminal offense provable beyond a reasonable doubt," and added, "I believe that they have taken this matter seriously and respect the judgment that they have made."