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FBI RAIDS - Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams canceled meetings in Washington, D.C. on Thursday as Federal Bureau of Investigation agents raided the Brooklyn home of his fundraising chief, Brianna Suggs.
Adams' first mayoral campaign paid Suggs over $50,000 and his 2025 reelection campaign has paid her nearly $100,000 for fundraising and consulting, The New York Times reported, citing city records.
Suggs previously worked for Adams when he was Brooklyn's borough president, joining the office as an administrative intern in 2017, according to her LinkedIn profile. She is also a registered lobbyist.
As Gothamist detailed:
Suggs' neighbors in Crown Heights said they saw FBI agents enter her residence at around 9:00 am.
"I woke up to the FBI," said neighbor Christopher Burwell. "I saw the FBI on the block and it was really scary."
A reporter viewed cellphone footage of several FBI agents in bureau vests entering the home and carrying boxes out.
At 7:41 am, Adams shared on social media a video of his flight to D.C., where he—along with Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Mayor Michael Johnston—was set to meet with congressional and White House officials to discuss migrant issues.
Adams has been criticized by other New Yorkers, including Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), for recent comments about an influx of migrants from the southern U.S. border who he said would "destroy New York City."
WABC reported Thursday that "it appears the mayor left an aide in Washington to participate in the White House meeting, which is continuing" with the Chicago and Denver leaders, also both Democrats.
"The mayor is returning to New York City to address a matter," Charles Kretchmer Lutvak, the mayor's spokesperson, said in an email to the Times. "These meetings will be rescheduled as soon as possible."
Lutvak also noted that Suggs is not a City Hall employee and directed reporters who asked about the FBI executing a search warrant at her residence to the mayor's reelection campaign.
Adams' reelection campaign counsel Vito Pitta told Politico: "The campaign has always held itself to the highest standards. The campaign will of course comply with any inquiries, as appropriate."
The mayor, a former police officer, has come under fire for taking campaign cash from real estate titans and donors who don't live in the city. Still, so far he has no challengers for the 2025 primary in the predominantly Democratic city.
"Progressives might agree on the problem, but... they're nowhere near figuring out who should actually run against Adams," Intelligencer reported Monday. "Conversations with 20 elected officials, aides, advocates, and strategists show that New York's left is in the midst of a crisis that might allow the centrist mayor to go practically unchallenged in his reelection campaign."
(Jessica Corbett is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams where this article was first published.)
