WASHINGTON (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday abruptly returned to New York City after canceling high-level meetings in Washington to discuss the migrant crisis--a sudden change of schedule that appears to be related to a raid on his reelection campaign's chief fundraiser.
The exact reason for the cancelation of such long-sought meetings remained a mystery Thursday afternoon, but it came as FBI agents raided the Brooklyn home of his chief fundraiser, Brianna Suggs, fueling speculation that’s what prompted the mayor's sudden trip back to New York.
Suggs was questioned by agents from an FBI public corruption squad during the “law enforcement action” at her Crown Heights home. 1010 WINS has confirmed with sources that the raid is part of a federal investigation out of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan. The attorney’s office declined comment when asked if the raid was part of a campaign finance investigation.
The Mayor’s Office confirmed that the FBI has not contacted Adams about the raid on Suggs’ home.
Suggs worked as a key advisor for Adams when he was Brooklyn borough president and is a major player in his reelection campaign and in advancing his agenda.
This past July, Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg charged six people in connection with an alleged campaign straw donor scheme to divert public money to Adams' campaign, but neither the mayor nor city officials were implicated in that investigation.
It appears Adams may have been out of pocket with his press office, as all they could say Thursday was that he was returning to New York to “deal with a matter.”
In a statement, Adams 2021 campaign counsel Vito Pitta said, “The campaign has always held itself to the highest standards. The campaign will of course comply with any inquiries, as appropriate.”
Sources told 1010 WINS that the mayor’s return was not "City Hall–related." It's unclear if that means it's some other city-related issue or a personal matter, but it leaves open the possibility it’s related to his campaign.
Another source said there's no security issue in the city at this time that prompted the return.
The mayor also canceled a meeting later in the day with the City Council Women's Caucus, which was not on his public schedule, sources said.
It all started when the mayor's public schedule was suddenly updated--and all of his big D.C. meetings canceled--just after 9 a.m., with his office saying the meetings “will be rescheduled as soon as possible.”
The mayor's turnaround was swift—less than two hours before his schedule was updated, he had posted video of himself on a flight to D.C.
Adams and President Joe Biden's administration have clashed on the issue of asylum seekers, as the mayor has pushed the president to do more to help alleviate a crisis that is costing New York City billions of dollars.
Adams and two other mayors—Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson—were scheduled to meet with senior White House officials, as well as members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, to "discuss the impact of the asylum seeker crisis on localities across the country."
Johnston and Johnson reportedly planned to take part in the meetings as scheduled without Adams, who has been front and center on the issue.
Over the weekend, the mayors of New York, Chicago and Denver joined the mayors of Los Angeles and Houston in sending a letter to Biden requesting an "urgent meeting" with the president to outline the need for federal aid, stepping up work authorization, and creating a collaborative process for appointing regional coordinators to work with nonprofits, government entities and others.
New York City is currently housing about 66,000 migrants, with around 140,000 arriving in the city since last spring.
The city is managing more than 213 emergency shelter sites. City Hall has estimated that the crisis will cost the city around $12 billion over the next three fiscal years.