NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Law enforcement officials conducted searches of the FDNY headquarters and the homes of two senior chiefs on Thursday morning in connection with a corruption investigation on whether they had improperly accepted payments, according to officials and reports.
New York investigators -- working with FBI agents, but those agents didn't necessarily execute the searches themselves -- conducted searches at the FDNY headquarters in Brooklyn, Chief Anthony Saccavino's Brooklyn home and deputy chief Brian Cordasco's Staten Island home. The two men oversee safety inspections, according to the New York Times.
The FBI New York field office would not confirm searches at either men's homes when provided with their names or the FDNY headquarters, but when provided by 1010 WINS with the address of Saccavino's home and asked if a search was conducted there Thursday, an FBI New York spokesman told 1010 WINS, "FBI New York was at that location carrying out law enforcement activities."
Sources tell 1010 WINS the FBI was not present at the search at the FDNY headquarters.
It is unclear if they were present at Cordasco's home.
“The FDNY’s first priority is always keeping New Yorkers safe, and we expect every member of the department to act appropriately,” the FDNY said in a statement. “As soon as Commissioner Kavanagh was alerted to these allegations last year, she immediately referred them to DOI to investigate them. Commissioner Kavanagh has proactively placed the employees at the center of this investigation on modified duty, and we are awaiting guidance from DOI regarding further action.”
The probe began in the summer of 2023, initially focused on whether the two chiefs had received nearly $100,000 each in a scheme to expedite or arrange inspections, according to the reports.
It wasn't immediately clear if the search was related to the corruption case involving Mayor Eric Adams and his fundraising campaign in 2021, according to reports.
Neither Cordasco, who has been with the FDNY since 2002, nor Saccavino has been accused of wrongdoing.
1010 WINS has reached out to the FBI and the NYC Department of Investigation for comment.
The DOI confirmed with 1010 WINS that it received a complaint from the FDNY but declined to further comment.