City Saga – Feds Raid Mayor Adams Administration Members

By Nayaba Arinde
Editor-at-Large
Federal agents seem to have an ongoing active interest in the administration of New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams.
This, while calls are growing to have Police Commissioner Edward Caban resign, as some news reports allege that his twin brother James, a former cop and nightlife consultant, is accused of trying to peddle leverage of his brother’s position in his dealings with city restaurants and nightclubs.

On Thursday afternoon Mayor Adams announced, “A short time ago I accepted the resignation of the NYPD commissioner, Edward Caban. He concluded that this is the best decision at this time. I respect his decision and I wish him well.”

Retired FBI official Tom Donlon was announced as the interim police commissioner. Some speculate that this may signal a greater look at the NYPD by the feds, especially since Donlon has no prior NYPD career experience.
It was breaking news last week when it was announced that members of Mayor Adams’ inner circle had their phones, electronic devices taken, and residences searched. In Manhattan on Wednesday 6th September, FBI agents searched the house First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright lives in with her partner School Chancellor David Banks; his brother Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks’ Queens home; and their brother Terence Banks, a former MTA employee, and city consultant, plus 7 additional high-ranking NYPD officials–had their electronics taken.

Previously, the mayor had said, “I have the utmost confidence in the New York City Police Department. “Whatever new changes in the administration will be made, when they come about, we will announce them.”

Speaking last Sunday in East New York’s Changing Lives Christian Center, the somewhat beleaguered Mayor said, “I’m just in my Job moment…and when you come out of your Job moment and your faith is intact, you will receive blessings tenfold.”
Looking to his faith base, Adams also visited the Power and Authority Evangelical Ministry.
“I am mayor because God gave me the authority to be mayor.”

With The City noting that there are “at least four separate federal probes that focus on his campaign and mayoral administration,” some are speculating whether it is a “witch hunt” and a racist smear campaign, or a focused assault on the city’s second Black mayor.
Adams’ fundraising may be the major focus in the Fed’s sights. From last year the FBI has been investigating the Mayor’s 2021 election Campaign Finance dealings.

In July last year six people – including a former NYPD inspector Dwayne Montgomery, were indicted in a FBI probe to determine whether illegal donations came from straw donors.
Last week’s action follows the November 2023 FBI snatching of electronic devices and a phone in the Crown Heights home of Brianna Suggs, a top tier Adams’ fundraiser.

Adams’ relations with Turkey and China are also back in the news. Adams made many pre-mayoral office trips to Turkey, and brought up again has been his alleged urging as Brooklyn Borough President to then Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro, that the midtown Manhattan Turkish Consulate receive a Certificate of Occupancy despite reported concerns.
The Feds have been digging into details of Adams Borough President-era trip to China with his now current special advisor Winnie Grecco.

“I’m not touching that issue with a ten-foot pole,” a political operative quipped when asked by Our Time Press to comment on the developing situation.
“Mayor Adams has publicly vowed and encouraged compliance with all parties publicly identified and related to this network of investigations,” retired detective Marquez Claxton, and co-founder of the Black Law Enforcement Alliance told Our Time Press. “It is important to keep the public facing investigative actions in context and proper perspective, especially since there has been no indictment or arrest. There remains a presumption of innocence.

Speculation aside there is no clear or confirmed established nexus between the most recent served Federal warrants and direct actions involving Mayor Adams. Clearly, these types of investigations cause heightened concerns or even anxiety, but there should be no noticeable impact to City services because government operations tend to be broadly resourced yet compartmentalized.

The real challenge moving forward is clearly communicating that not every inquiry or investigation of government employees is directly related to the Mayor himself or to official actions or business of the Office of the Mayor. All of these Federal actions must be taken seriously, but investigations are a search for the truth and oftentimes obtaining that truth leads to no further action.”

In a heady general election season the recent news cycle has included a number of electeds and notables undergoing investigations and worse, from former Congressman George Santos, now-convicted Senator Bob Melendez, 34-count convicted felon and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, and guilty-pleading Hunter Biden, son of President Joseph Biden.

“As a former member of law enforcement, the mayor has repeatedly made clear that all members of the team need to follow the law,” said Adam’s Chief Counsel Lisa Zornberg.
She pointed out in a statement,”Investigators have not indicated to us the mayor or his staff are targets of any investigation.”

“It’s a tough city. Every mayor had a challenge, so he has a challenge, but he took on a challenge from the mayor before him,” Beat 139 podcast host Vernon “Donveto” Boisseau told Our Time Press.

“As in the House of Cards show, everything is crumbling around him,” a Brooklyn lawyer told Our Time Press. “The Feds seem to be targeting the people around him, or is it really him they want? We want the mayor to be able to focus on running the city, but even though he says he will just allow the process to run its course, this is such a distraction.”
Opinion is divided. Folk are ruminating on the perceived facts.

“I don’t want to make a statement at this time,” was an oft-repeated response to an Our Time Press question about the startling story.
“New York is a tough city even if you fix things something else will break. You can never fix it 100%,” broadcaster Donveto told Our Time Press. “That’s just New York. It is the melting pot of the world. This is the Mecca. The entertainment capital of the world. There is no other state in the United States that everybody comes to.”

He added after the post-Covid-era trauma, came the migrants sent from Texas by the 1000s sans commiserate funding from President Biden and the federal government, and Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state government, “So now you gave me a problem I didn’t even expect and this is a hard problem cause we need funding.”
According to Donveto, Adams is a problem solver. “The education problem–he fixed it, the kindergarten problem–he fixed it, he fixes the small business problem, he’s working on housing.”

With the current federal investigation of his administration, the broadcast activist determined, “He’s facing another problem–so he fixes the problem.”
With almost three million in his mayoral re-election campaign war chest, Adams is gearing up to run again; as are possibility-exploring former City Comptroller Scott Stringer and State Sen. Zellnor Myrie, and Comptroller Brad Lander, with $412,000, $326,000, and $187,000 respectively.

Not declared, but fueling speculation is three-time former governor Andrew Cuomo, Queens State Senator Jessica Ramos, and Bronx/Manhattan Councilmember Diana Ayala.
Tuning out all the brouhaha, Adams said that he is “committed to completing my term and running for re-election.”