The New York Police Department (NYPD) is facing more distractions following the resignation of former Commissioner Edward Caban last week as its new interim commissioner, Thomas Donlon, was raided by the FBI late last week.
“On Friday, September 20, federal authorities executed search warrants at my residences,” Donlon said in a statement late on Saturday. “They took materials that came into my possession approximately 20 years ago and are unrelated to my work with the New York City Police Department.”
“This is not a department matter, and the department will not be commenting,” he added.
Statement from the Police Commissioner: pic.twitter.com/K0talEghOc
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) September 22, 2024
The New York Post reported that the investigation into Donlon appears to center around whether he took classified material while he worked at the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
At the FBI, Donlon was the head of the FBI’s National Threat Assessment Center and the FBI-NYPD Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Post added. At DHS, Donlon was the director of New York’s Office of Homeland Security.
Donlon took over the position after being tapped by New York City Mayor Eric Adams following Caban’s abrupt resignation from the job just a little over a week ago after his phone was seized by federal agents in a criminal investigation.
The investigation, at least in part, centers around a nightclub security business that is owned by Caban’s twin brother, James Caban, and whether he used his brother to “fix potential problems for clubs and bars,” The Washington Post reported. The probe is reportedly focusing on other police officials as well.
“My complete focus has always been on the NYPD – the department and people I love and have dedicated over 30 years of service to,” Caban said in a statement. “However, the news around recent developments has created a distraction for our department, and I am unwilling to let my attention be on anything other than our important work, or the safety of the men and women of the NYPD.”
The criminal investigation is being conducted by the Southern District of New York, which focuses on government corruption cases, and the IRS.
Adams, who is under criminal investigation over potential corruption stemming from actions involving the Turkish government, has seen numerous people in his orbit come under criminal investigation recently.
The FBI executed search warrants last week at the home of Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks and a home shared by First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright and Schools Chancellor David Banks. Investigators seized phones belonging to Caban and Timothy Pearson, a senior adviser to the mayor. A consultant, Terence Banks, brother of Philip Banks and David Banks, was also searched.
The feds raided the home of Adams’ director of Asian Affairs, Winnie Greco, earlier this year as part of a criminal probe run by the Eastern District of New York, the Times said. His former buildings commissioner, Eric Ulrich, faces bribery charges, and several donors to Adams’ campaign have been charged in a straw-donor scheme.