Eric Adams had cellphones, iPad seized by FBI as part of corruption investigation
The FBI seized Mayor Eric Adams’ electronic devices early this week as part of a federal probe into his campaign fundraising, The Post has learned.
The feds seized the electronics — which included at least two cellphones and an iPad — in connection to an investigation into whether Hizzoner’s 2021 campaign colluded with the Turkish government and others to direct money into his mayoral effort, sources told The Post after the news was first reported by the New York Times.
Adams’ campaign attorney Boyd Johnson said the mayor was cooperating with federal authorities and had already reported that a review found “an individual had recently acted improperly.”
“After learning of the federal investigation, it was discovered that an individual had recently acted improperly. In the spirit of transparency and cooperation, this behavior was immediately and proactively reported to investigators,” Johnson said in a statement obtained by The Post.
“On Monday night, the FBI approached the mayor after an event. The Mayor immediately complied with the FBI’s request and provided them with electronic devices. The mayor has not been accused of any wrongdoing and continues to cooperate with the investigation.”
The statement did not identify the individual or detail the improper behavior.
Adams himself added that “as a former member of law enforcement, I expect all members of my staff to follow the law and fully cooperate with any sort of investigation — and I will continue to do exactly that. I have nothing to hide.”
The agents approached Adams, 63, on the street after an event at New York University on Monday and asked his security team to step aside, a source told The Times.
The agents then got into Adams’ SUV with him and executed a court-authorized warrant to seize his devices.
The electronics were returned to the mayor within a few days, the sources said.
Sources told The Post that the FBI had notified Adams before, who was cooperative and willing to hand over the devices. However, the mayor did not know they were going to approach him in the street Monday evening.
“The manner in which he had his phones taken away in public seems targeted against the mayor in response to his stance on the immigration crisis,” another person with knowledge of the investigation told The Post.
Sources also told The Post that the mayor contacted investigators when he returned to Gracie Mansion and found more devices. He then coordinated with the FBI to turn over the additional electronics. It is unclear what these devices were.
It came a week after Adams had to abruptly and dramatically bail on a slate of White House immigration meetings to fly back to the Big Apple when FBI agents raided the home of his lead fundraiser Brianna Suggs — almost as soon as he had landed in Washington DC.
In the raid, agents seized two laptops, three cell phones and a folder labeled “Eric Adams.”
He later said the quick change of plans was out of a desire to support his team, including Suggs – a 25-year-old former intern the mayor lamented had gone through a “traumatic experience,” according to the New York Times.
The warrant obtained by the feds who burst into Suggs’ Brooklyn home sought documents related to contributions to Adams’ 2021 campaign, as well as records of travel to Turkey by campaign employees that could reveal more about any ties to the Turkish government.
The investigators were specifically looking for proof that the campaign kicked back benefits to leaders and employees at KSK Construction Group and Turkish officials as part of a “straw donors” scheme.
A straw donor is a person or company that illegally makes a donation with someone else’s money but uses their own name to hide its true source.
The search warrant – which was first obtained by the New York Times – also probed whether Adams’ campaign took advantage of New York City’s public matching program, which offers an eight-to-one match for the first $250 of a resident’s contribution.
Adams has repeatedly boasted about his ties with Turkey – even claiming last month that he is “probably the only mayor in the history of this city that has not only visited Turkey once, but I think I’m on my sixth or seventh visit to Turkey.”
But Hizzoner downplayed the seriousness of the investigation last week, stating, “where there’s smoke, there’s not always fire.”
Earlier this week, he confirmed that he hired Johnson, a former top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, as his defense attorney.
In July, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg brought charges against six people – including a former police commander and a construction firm – for organizing a straw donor scheme to funnel cash to Adams’ mayoral bid.
With additional reporting by Joe Marino
