Mayor Adams defends re-election campaign amid federal campaign probe

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has broken his silence in the wake of an FBI raid on the home of his chief fundraiser, 25-year-old Brianna Suggs. In an exclusive interview with PIX 11 News, Mayor Adams announced his continued support for Suggs, stating that she would remain a vital part of his re-election campaign.

He also asserted that he had not been contacted by any law enforcement agency regarding the ongoing investigation.

The FBI’s raid is believed to be part of a broader public corruption investigation into potential collusion between Mayor Adams’ campaign, a Brooklyn construction company, and the Turkish government. The investigation aims to determine whether foreign funds were funneled into the campaign. Adams vehemently defended Suggs, who started as a 19-year-old intern at Brooklyn Borough Hall, eventually becoming a key figure in fundraising efforts for the mayor.

Public campaign records reveal that over $150,000 in payments were made from Adams’ 2021 and re-election campaigns to Suggs’ firm, Suggs Solutions LLC, for consulting and fundraising services. Additionally, the Striving for a Better New York political action committee, which supports Adams’ policy initiatives, paid Suggs’ firm $100,000 for consulting and fundraising, according to state records.

Efforts to reach the PAC’s chairman, Alfred Cockfield, for comment were unsuccessful. Suggs also registered as a lobbyist, with 99 Solutions LLC agreeing to pay her firm $1,500 per month between August and December of the previous year to lobby the Adams administration regarding a Chinatown mall project. A spokesman for Suggs clarified that she received only $1,500 and did not engage with any city officials on the mall issue. Phone numbers listed on lobbying records yielded no responses.

Basil Smikle, a former director of the State Democratic Party, emphasized that Mayor Adams must maintain his focus on pressing issues such as immigration, the economy, and crime, while also hoping that the investigation remains limited to the fundraiser and the raid. Smikle warned that the longer the story persists, the more it may open the door for potential challengers in the upcoming election.

Meanwhile, an individual representing the Brooklyn construction company linked to the investigation, KSK Construction, declined to provide a comment. In response to the situation, Mayor Adams expressed his outrage and stated, “I have no knowledge, direct or otherwise, of any improper fundraising activity — and certainly not of any foreign money.” He also pledged to cooperate with officials in their inquiries.

Vito Pitta, the mayor’s 2021 campaign counsel, announced that the campaign had initiated an extensive review of all documents and actions by campaign workers connected to the contributors under scrutiny as soon as news of the federal inquiry surfaced.