Adams Fundraiser Raided In Turkish Donation Scheme Probe: Reports

NEW YORK CITY — FBI agents raided the home of a key fundraiser for Mayor Eric Adams as part of a public corruption probe into whether his 2021 mayoral campaign received illegal donations from the Turkish government, according to reports.

The investigation prompted Adams to abruptly cancel a high-profile White House meeting Thursday and rush back to New York City — a decision that prompted hours of mystery.

Adams, during an event Thursday evening, said he had not been contacted by "anyone from any law enforcement agency."

"That's why I came back from D.C. — to be here, to be on the ground and look at this inquiry as it was made," he said.

Details about the raid on the Brooklyn home of Brianna Suggs, a fundraising consultant who worked closely with Adams, came into focus late Thursday.

The New York Times reported that it stemmed from a probe about whether foreign money from Turkey was funneled into his 2021 mayoral campaign. The investigation also looked into whether his campaign kicked back benefits to a Brooklyn construction company and Turkish officials, the report states.

A representative of Adams' 2021 campaign told Patch the campaign would comply with inquiries.

"Mayor Adams has not been contacted as part of this inquiry," said Vito Pitta, the campaign's counsel, in a statement. "He has always held the campaign to the highest standards."

City Hall officials spent the day dodging direct questions about what led to the cancelation, which saw Adams rush back to New York City from a plane.

All they would offer the public, repeatedly, was that Hizzoner came back to address "a matter."

"The mayor returned to NYC to address a matter," said spokesperson Charles Lutvak to Patch's inquiry about whether the raid prompted the cancelation.

The mayor is returning to New York City to address a matter. These meetings will be rescheduled as soon as possible https://t.co/ui7HyhvOFg
— Kayla Mamelak Altus (@KaylaMamelak) November 2, 2023

The raid unfolded as Adams had been scheduled to travel to Washington, D.C., to join Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to meet with federal and senior White House officials over the asylum seeker crisis.

The meetings could have included Adams' first face-to-face meeting with President Joe Biden since January, Politico reported. Ties between Adams and Biden had frayed in recent months as Hizzoner grew increasingly vocal in his criticisms over how the president dealt with the migrant crisis.

The trip appeared to be going ahead as planned as late as roughly 7:40 a.m. Thursday morning when Adams posted a video of himself on an airplane.

"We'll keep you updated," he said in the video.

But by 9 a.m., Adams' staff sent out a revised schedule showing his meetings were canceled and that he'd travel back to the city.

"His meetings in Washington, DC will be rescheduled as soon as possible," the schedule stated.

Exactly what the vague "matter" entailed was left unsaid, prompting much head scratching among City Hall watchers until the New York Times and other outlets reported that the FBI searched Suggs' Crown Heights home.

Suggs had close ties to Adams for years.

She worked four years under Adams when he served as Brooklyn Borough President, according to her LinkedIn page. And she worked as fundraiser and director of logistics on Adams' 2021 mayoral campaign.

Adams' campaign fundraisers have faced scrutiny and even criminal charges, such as six mayoral campaign donors indicted in what Manhattan prosecutors said was a straw donor scheme.

Suggs herself raised eyebrows for soliciting donations for Adams' reelection bid while being paid to lobby his administration on behalf of a Manhattan property owner with business before the city, the New York Daily News first reported in April.

Patch writer Emily Rahhal contributed to this report.