FBI seizes electronic devices from New York City mayor

NEW YORK — The FBI seized several electronic devices from New York City Mayor Eric Adams this week — a major escalation in a growing public corruption investigation that appears to be centered around his 2021 mayoral campaign.

On Monday night, agents approached the mayor after an event and took the devices, according to a statement from Adams’ attorney, who added that the mayor immediately complied with the request.

The incident was first reported Friday by The New York Times, which described a striking scene: FBI officials intercepted the mayor on the street and asked his security detail to step aside while the feds climbed into Adams’ city-issued vehicle and seized at least two cellphones and an iPad. The investigators kept the devices for several days — copies of personal electronic devices are often made by investigators — before returning them.

A person with knowledge of the events told POLITICO that City Hall voluntarily turned over more electronic devices after the initial seizure. That person was granted anonymity to discuss behind-the-scenes events in the wake of the seizure.

Neither Adams nor his staff have been accused of wrongdoing. But the seizure of his electronic devices comes on the heels of a Nov. 2 FBI raid at the home of his campaign treasurer, 25-year-old Brianna Suggs.

A search warrant obtained by the Times indicated that agents were looking for evidence in Suggs' home that the campaign colluded with the Turkish government and accepted illicit contributions from Turkish citizens.

A statement Friday from Adams’ lawyer, Boyd Johnson, suggested that someone else had been referred to federal authorities — though the WilmerHale attorney did not provide any details.

“After learning of the federal investigation, it was discovered that an individual had recently acted improperly," Johnson said. "In the spirit of transparency and cooperation, this behavior was immediately and proactively reported to investigators."

Adams himself said that he was complying with the investigation.

“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,” he said in a statement Friday evening. “I have nothing to hide.”

News of the seizure wasn’t widely shared with administration employees, according to two City Hall staffers, who told POLITICO they first learned of the FBI’s action from the Times report.

“The story popped up, then I read it. It said they took [the devices] and they gave them back,” said Diane Savino, a senior adviser to the mayor’s chief adviser, Ingrid Lewis-Martin. “I know as much as you do.”

“They’re keeping this close,” said another staffer who was granted anonymity to discuss internal dynamics.

But the escalation by federal law enforcement seemed to motivate potential challengers to the mayor in 2025.

“For someone who claims to get stuff done, I really wish he would get work done,” state Sen. Jessica Ramos, a Democrat, said in an interview Friday. “This is all very distracting.” Ramos has not ruled out a potential primary challenge in 2025.

News of the seizure dropped as thousands of New York political figures were in Puerto Rico for the annual Somos conference. At various receptions around a San Juan hotel, the news quickly became the main topic of conversation. Two elected officials separately said it reminded them of a Netflix drama.

“The investigation has to take its course,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, another potential mayoral challenger. “But we would be foolish to say that something isn't different.”

A mayoral spokesperson countered that City Hall has not deviated from its mission.

“Mayor Adams announced another month of crime being down this past week, a record high number of jobs in our city’s history last month, and continues to deliver every day for working-class New Yorkers,” spokesperson Fabien Levy said in a statement. “Like the mayor likes to say, ‘stay focused, no distractions, and grind.’”

On the night Adams’ devices were seized, he delivered remarks at a New York University event. The mayor was then scheduled to attend a Tribeca fundraiser for PCNY, an organization that co-hosts a weekly food distribution event for homeless New Yorkers that Adams regularly attends.

The fundraiser’s host, Wayne Schneider, declined to comment Friday on whether Adams actually made it.

At the time of the raid on Suggs’ house last week, Adams was in Washington, D.C. to attend high-level meetings about the migrant crisis with federal officials — including those at the White House — alongside two other big-city mayors. However, the mayor turned around before his first engagement and rushed back to New York.

At a press briefing Wednesday, Adams praised Suggs and defended his campaign — but did not mention or allude to the seizure of his devices.

“I sleep well at night … We follow the rules,” the mayor said. “And I am angry if there are those [who] in any way attempt to do anything that will go against our process of how we collect campaign dollars or the procedures that are in our city.”