Photo: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Eric Adams is currently facing a five-count federal indictment that includes charges of bribery, wire fraud, and soliciting contributions from foreign nationals. But that’s not the only investigation swirling around the mayor, his aides, and close confidants, all of which has sent federal officials on a road trip around the greater New York region, conducting a series of searches — from Edward Caban’s Rockland County home to Flushing’s New World Mall to Ingrid Lewis-Martin’s apartment in East Flatbush. As far as we can tell, officials have visited at least four of the city’s five boroughs and its unofficial sixth borough, Fort Lee, New Jersey. For your convenience, we’ve collected an ongoing list of the places — homes, secret offices, buildings — that have been searched to give you a sense of the geographical scope of the investigations. And the surprising number of siblings involved! Have fun.
Who’s involved?
Eric Adams, our mayor
Which investigation are we talking about?
Foreign bribery probe involving Turkish nationals (and some really nice hotels).
What’s the deal?
Adams’s home away from his many, many other homes, Gracie Mansion, was searched on September 26, just hours after the mayor was indicted. At 6 a.m. on Thursday, almost a dozen agents in suits were seen filing into the mansion to seize the mayor’s phone. “We would have happily turned it in,” Adams’s lawyer said. Sure.
Photo: Google Maps
Who’s involved?
Brianna Suggs, former chief fundraiser for Eric Adams
Which investigation are we talking about?
Foreign bribery probe
What’s the deal?
Federal agents searched Suggs’s Brooklyn brownstone in November 2023. They seized her electronic devices and documents including a “manila folder labeled Eric Adams.” (Suggs herself has not been accused of any wrongdoing, but she has been reassigned.)
Who’s involved?
Ingrid Lewis-Martin, chief adviser to Eric Adams
Which investigation are we talking about?
Foreign bribery probe
What’s the deal?
Lewis-Martin, who is one of Adams’s closest aides and famously does not ride the subway, returned from vacation in Japan last week and immediately had her home on Troy Avenue searched by FBI agents. (It seems like she is currently facing subpoenas and warrants related to both a federal and a state investigation — her lawyer said she was “not the target of any case of which we are aware.”) Lewis-Martin has served as a top aide to Adams since 2006.
Who’s involved?
Rana Abbasova, aide to Eric Adams (on leave)
Which investigation are we talking about?
Foreign bribery probe
What’s the deal?
Abbasova, an aide in Adams’s International Affairs Office, had her house in Fort Lee searched last November as part of the investigation that led to Adams’s indictment. Abbasova served as a liaison between Adams’s office and the city’s Turkish community during his tenure as Brooklyn borough president. She has been on leave since the probe but has not been accused of any wrongdoing and is cooperating with investigators.
Photo: Karolis Kavolelis/Shutterstock
Who’s involved?
A couple of people, possibly
Which investigation are we talking about?
Kind of unclear at this point!
What’s the deal?
The New York Post reported in late September that federal agents investigating the NYPD showed up to the Verizon building where Phil Banks, deputy mayor for public safety, and senior adviser Timothy Pearson work. (Pearson’s home was also searched. He resigned on September 30.) It’s also reportedly a secret, off-site office for Adams. It’s so far unclear what the agents were doing there, and a spokesperson for Adams denied that the search occurred at all, telling the Post, “City Hall’s additional offices at 375 Pearl Street were not raided by federal law enforcement on Wednesday as was inaccurately reported earlier and there is no record of them visiting our team that day.”
Photo: Google Maps
Who’s involved?
Sheena Wright, first deputy mayor, and David Banks, schools chancellor
Which investigation are we talking about?
A City Hall bribery probe centered around city contracts allegedly granted to a consulting company run by David’s brother Terence Banks. (Terence is also on our list. As is a third Banks brother, Phillip.)
What’s the deal?
Sheena Wright and David Banks are married (just at the end of September, conveniently — some say! — conferring spousal privilege in any possible court proceedings) and live together in a townhouse in Harlem. Wright’s and Banks’s devices were seized in early September, at the same time as Banks’s two brothers. Neither has been accused of wrongdoing, and when reporters showed up to their house the day after the search, all Banks had to say was, “Today is the first day of school, and I am thrilled.” (Banks and Wright have denied wrongdoing.)
Photo: Google Maps
Who’s involved?
Terence Banks, consultant
Which investigation are we talking about?
City Hall bribery probe
What’s the deal?
Terence is one of three Banks brothers who, in September, have had federal search warrants issued for their homes as part of an investigation into an alleged City Hall bribery scheme. He lives in a vaguely Tudor-style home in Queens. The specifics of the investigation are not yet clear but may involve a consulting firm started by Terence called Pearl Alliance. (He has not officially been accused of any wrongdoing and has denied wrongdoing.)
Who’s involved?
Philip Banks III, deputy mayor for public safety
Which investigation are we talking about?
City Hall bribery probe
What’s the deal?
At the same time that his brothers’ homes were being searched, Philip Banks III’s house was also searched as part of the alleged bribery scheme. According to public records, Philip lives in a detached single-family house just a ten-minute drive from Terence. He worked for the NYPD for decades, and was previously entangled in another police-corruption investigation, in which he was named as an unindicted co-conspirator. (He also has not been officially accused of wrongdoing and has denied wrongdoing.)
Photo: Google Maps
Who’s involved?
Edward Caban, former police commissioner, and James Caban, former police officer
Which investigation are we talking about?
A probe that, per reporting from the New York Times, involves bribes allegedly made to secure favorable treatment to certain nightclubs, and centers around Edward Caban and his twin brother, James Caban.
What’s the deal?
Edward’s house was searched in September, after which he resigned as police commissioner. He’s reportedly under investigation related to dealings with James, also a former cop. James owns a nightclub-security business and allegedly took money from clubs in exchange for favors from the police. (Edward’s lawyers said that prosecutors told them he’s not a target of the investigation; James has not yet been charged.) The two, however, seem to be womb-to-tomb — according to public records, they live in houses across the street from each other. Get a life!
Photo: Sheetal Banchariya/NY Daily News/Getty Images
Who’s involved?
Winnie Greco, senior adviser to Eric Adams who was also a big fundraiser for him and served as the mayor’s director of Asian affairs
Which investigation are we talking about?
Unclear at this point!
What’s the deal? In February, two of Greco’s homes were searched as part of a federal investigation that was conducted with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn. It’s so far unclear from other reporting what was being investigated, and she was not accused of any wrongdoing.
Photo: Google Maps
Who’s involved?
Unclear
Which investigation are we talking about?
Unclear so far!
What’s the deal?
At the same time investigators searched Winnie Greco’s home, they also showed up to the New World Mall, famous for its incredible food court. The mall’s owners donated to Adams, and during the mayoral election, it was home to a campaign office where Greco worked. The campaign also held numerous fundraising events at the mall’s banquet hall. As The City reported, a suspicious number of mall workers donated exactly $249 to the Adams campaign (the maximum amount to receive public matching funds), some who say they were reimbursed or never donated.
Who’s involved?
Thomas Donlon, interim police commissioner
Which investigation are we talking about?
A complaint about Donlon holding on to classified materials
What’s the deal?
After Edward Caban resigned as police commissioner, at the request of City Hall, Donlon stepped up to the post. Now, his home has been searched as well. Federal agents seized classified documents that Donlon had kept for decades, and federal officials told the Times that their search was not related to the other federal investigations. “They took materials that came into my possession approximately 20 years ago and are unrelated to my work with the New York City Police Department,” Donlon said in a release after the search. “This is not a department matter, and the department will not be commenting.” Per reporting from ABC 7, warrants were executed for Donlon’s residences, one of which is on the Upper East Side.
