According to multiple law enforcement officials who spoke with CNN, an FBI raid on Thursday morning at the primary fundraiser’s home in New York City for Mayor Eric Adam is reportedly a part of an investigation to find out if Adams’ 2021 mayoral campaign colluded with a Brooklyn-based construction company to transfer foreign funds into the campaign coffers.
Law enforcement officials with knowledge of the search warrants told CNN that the investigators are looking for proof that foreign nationals, who are prohibited from contributing, may have “bundled” donations by entering the Turkish-American communities in New York and persuading citizens of the United States who are of Turkish descent to participate as “straw contributors.”
The purported plan would have made it possible for funds originating from overseas corporations to be misrepresented as contributions from US residents who, in reality, made no financial contributions.
CNN has requested comments from the Turkish Embassy and the State Department.
In response to the inquiry into his campaign, Adams stated on Thursday night that he held both his campaign and himself to a high standard.
“I’m really at ease with the way I adhere to policies and guidelines. I’ve said this numerous times. I have very high expectations of myself, my campaign, and my employees at city hall,” he remarked.
Teams of FBI officers carried out “many search warrants” at residences and places of business in the New York region on Thursday morning. Among them was one at the residence of Brianna Suggs, the lead campaign fundraiser for Adams, according to several law enforcement sources who spoke with CNN.
The search of Suggs’ house was originally covered by The New York Times.
Suggs is an important component of Adams’ reelection campaign fundraising machine. The campaign finance board for the city reports that almost $2.5 million has already been raised by the Adams 2025 campaign.
Suggs’s representative declined to comment.
According to CNN station WCBS, Adams described Suggs as “a real professional” who performs her job well and will cooperate with any inquiries made to her during a Thursday night interview with reporters.
The FBI has been contacted by CNN for a statement.
The sources stated that the searches are a component of the FBI’s Public Corruption unit’s investigation. The sources said that the agents stole files, computers, tablets, and phones from Suggs.
According to law enforcement officials, KSK Construction Group in Brooklyn was one of the businesses that was searched. The building and development company is a part of the KiSKA Construction Corporation, which owns two Turkish hotel chains in the US, and has constructed apartments and condos throughout the city.
At least 11 KSK Construction Group employees contributed a total of $13,950, ranging from $1,200 to $1,500, on the same day to Adams’s 2021 mayoral campaign, according to a CNN analysis of campaign finance records. The contributors have been contacted by CNN for comments.
Erden Arkan, who is identified as the owner of KSK Construction Group LLC. and a donor to the Adams campaign, has also been contacted by CNN. Records from the New York City Campaign Finance indicate that Arkan gave $1,500.
CNN was sent to the Adams campaign earlier on Thursday by a representative for the mayor’s office.
“The campaign consistently holds itself to the highest standards,” Vitto Pitta, the campaign counsel for Adams in 2021, stated to CNN. Naturally, the campaign will respond to any queries in a suitable manner.
According to Pitta, the mayor had not been approached as part of the inquiry.
Adams abruptly canceled his planned travel back to New York after meeting with federal officials in Washington, DC, on Thursday morning over the migrant problem. Later on Thursday, an Adams representative told CNN that the mayor “wanted to get back to New York as quickly as possible because he heard of an issue related to the campaign and takes these issues seriously.” He intends to go back to Washington, DC, and reschedule these meetings as soon as possible.
Adams has made no secret of his connections to the Turkish American community in the city. At a flag-raising ceremony that took place recently in Lower Manhattan, he mentioned that he had traveled to the nation at least six or seven times.
Adams remarked this week, “I think I’m on my sixth or seventh visit to Turkey, making me probably the only mayor in this city’s history to have not only visited Turkey once.”
In August 2015, Adams inked a sister city arrangement with Istanbul’s Üsküdar district while serving as the president of Brooklyn Borough Council. Adams has visited Turkey at least twice. The World Tourism Foundation paid for the second trip, while the Turkish Consulate paid for the first one.
In a press statement at the time, Adams stated, “This visit underscores the deep significance of our own Turkish community & their contributions to our One Brooklyn family.”
A financial windfall for his mayoral candidacy followed the trip to Turkey. In July 2018, supporters of Turkish Americans held a fundraiser for Adams at Ali Baba Turkish Restaurant in Manhattan’s Kips Bay neighborhood.