Federal authorities have besieged Mayor Eric Adams’ administration for greater than a yr — and their community seems to have tightened in latest weeks as brokers launched a stunning series of attacks for Hizzoner’s finest lieutenants, closest political allies and most trusted aides.
The Southern District of New York is conducting a number of of the investigations. However the feds have remained tight-lipped in regards to the probes — together with their targets, potential prices and the way they may intertwine.
Here is what we all know in regards to the investigations, raids, indictments and different authorized points surrounding the Adams administration:
Adams’ 2021 mayoral marketing campaign
Final November, federal brokers raided the Brooklyn residence of Briana Suggs, a 25-year-old philanthropist with shut ties to Adams’ inside circle — together with Ingrid Lewis-Martin, the so-called Metropolis Corridor Lioness who acts as Hizzoner’s high adviser and gatekeeper.
Authorities are mentioned to be investigating Suggs — a key marketing campaign operative who claims to have raised greater than $18 million for the mayor — for a doable bribery scheme involving the Turkish authorities and a Brooklyn-based development firm.
The feds’ warrant says they’re in search of proof of theft of federal funds, wire fraud, conspiracy to steal federal funds and conspiracy as a part of a public corruption investigation investigating whether or not cash was illegally funneled to Adams’ 2021 mayoral marketing campaign Mr.
The investigators are too looking for airline upgrades and a plan to expedite the opening of the Turkish authorities’s new diplomatic headquarters in Manhattan, sources mentioned.
This summer season, federal prosecutors in Manhattan ordered Metropolis Corridor, the Adams marketing campaign and the mayor himself to show over paperwork, texts and different data associated to the investigation.
No prices have been filed.
The New York Metropolis Police Commissioner and his twin brother
Sources say the feds have targeting now-former NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban and his twin brother Jamesas a part of a large-scale corruption investigation involving affect peddling.
Caban, who had been with the NYPD for greater than three a long time, resigned final week after federal brokers confirmed up on the door of his Rockland County residence brandishing warrants and demanding his digital gadgets.
Authorities did the identical to ex-cop James Caban, who lives throughout the road from his brother, as a part of an investigation into James’ work as a “fixer” for upscale Manhattan eating places and nightclubs that had run into bother with the police.
None of them have been accused or charged with any wrongdoing.
Shut assistants David, Phil and Terence Banks
The three Banks brothers — college principal David, deputy mayor of public security Phil and personal advisor Terrence — are additionally targets of federal prosecutors in Manhattan, whose brokers seized their digital gadgets throughout a large raid earlier this month.
Like the opposite investigations, the Banks brothers are suspected of involvement in a scheme of corruption and buying and selling in affect – particularly, whether ex-cop Phil Banks had a hand in managing town contracts for brother Terence’s purchasers, sources mentioned.
After the raids — which additionally caught David Banks’ associate, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright — reviews emerged that one in every of Terrance’s purchasers, the schooling know-how firm 21stCentEd, was in a position to meet with the college chancellor lower than a month after he employed Terence to symbolize them.
Investigators are trying into whether or not Terence’s agencyPearl Alliancebroke the legislation by utilizing his household connections to assist personal companies get metropolis contracts, a supply informed The Related Press.
Nobody has been charged with a criminal offense.
Winnie Greco
Federal brokers raided the Bronx residence of one other of Adams’ high aides, Winnie Greco, again in February as they sought emails and data of the mayor’s journeys to China throughout his years as Brooklyn borough president.
Greco, then a volunteer who runs the nonprofit Sino-America New York Brooklyn Archway Affiliation Corp., had collect the tripsources mentioned.
It is unclear what proof the federal government sought to search out about Adams’ abroad adventures or how they may match into a bigger corruption probe involving Greco and the mayor, who is claimed to be out of New York’s Japanese District.
Greco had beforehand been underneath investigation by town’s Division of Investigation over allegations that she misused her place at Metropolis Corridor to acquire perks — corresponding to repairs to her properties.
Eric Ulrich
Eric Ulrich, the previous head of town’s Division of Buildings, faces prices of trading political favors in exchange for over $150,000 in bribes.
Ulrich, a 38-year-old former councilman from Queens who additionally served briefly as a senior adviser to Adams, pleaded not guilty in September 2023 to 16 felonies stemming from a long-running scheme that prosecutors say netted him a premium bundle of Mets season tickets value $10,000, a customized go well with and an apprentice portray by Salvador Dali, amongst different issues.
In return, Ulrich supplied the co-conspirators with entry to high-ranking metropolis officers, which included invites to unique occasions and dinners — in addition to jobs for his or her members of the family, fast-track tasks and a number of different corrupt practices and acts, prosecutors mentioned.
He allegedly used the cash and presents he acquired from his six co-defendants to stay lavishly and fund playing habits that included visits to casinos and unlawful playing institutions.
His case remains to be pending.
Retired FDNY Chiefs Anthony Saccavino and Brian Cordasco
Sacavino and Cordasco — as soon as the 2 highest-ranking members of the FDNY’s Bureau of Hearth Prevention — had been hit with a federal indictment on Monday who accused them of accepting practically $200,000 in bribes.
The feds say the pair fashioned a devious “secret partnership” with a retired firefighter over two years to shortly examine about 30 completely different tasks within the Massive Apple in change for a payoff, in accordance with the indictment in Manhattan federal courtroom.
The retiree, Henry Santiago Jr., handed out money and examine bribes to the 2 throughout dinners at steakhouses and on the Bureau of Hearth Prevention’s workplace in Brooklyn, courtroom paperwork mentioned.
“It’s alleged that they’ve created a VIP lane for sooner service that may solely be accessed with bribes,” mentioned Damian Williams, U.S. Legal professional for the Southern District of New York. “That is traditional pay-to-play corruption.”
Authorities charged each males with conspiracy to solicit and obtain a bribe, solicitation and receipt of a bribe, sincere companies fraud, conspiracy to commit sincere companies fraud and perjury. They plead not responsible.
