NYPD School Safety Division searched by federal investigators, sources say
By Marcia KramerMahsa Saeidi,
3 hours ago
NEW YORK -- The NYPD's School Safety Division was searched by federal investigators Thursday in Queens, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation.
Sources tell CBS News New York the home of that department's former commanding officer, Kevin Taylor, was also searched and his cellphones seized.
According to the NYPD, Taylor was reassigned to Patrol Borough Manhattan North in February, and on Thursday, he was restricted to desk duty pending the outcome of an investigation.
The New York Times reports the latest search is part of a probe into a potential bribery scheme involving city contracts. The focus is reportedly on a consulting firm run by Terence Banks, the brother of two top Adams administration officials who have either resigned or retired. It's reportedly related to SaferWatch, a tech company that sells panic buttons to schools and police across the country.
A spokesperson says, "SaferWatch has worked successfully with law enforcement agencies and with schools throughout the nation. There are no indications that the company or any of its employees are targets of any investigation."
None of the Banks brothers have been charged with any wrongdoing, and they've maintained they've done nothing wrong.
The feds and the city's Department of Investigation have declined to comment.
It's unclear exactly when Adams will make his decision, but it could be as early as next week.
Latest investigations of Adams' inner circle
The mayor's administration is also facing another corruption investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the city's Department of Investigation. Sources say it involves the city's leasing of commercial properties and a number of officials, including Adams' chief advisor Ingrid Lewis-Martin , who has been his confidant for decades. Prosecutors seized Lewis-Martin's phones a few weeks ago when she returned from a trip in Japan, along with Diana Boutross, a broker involved with city leases.
Lewis-Martin's lawyer, Arthur Aidala, told CBS News New York he was confident his client's actions will be found to have met "the highest legal standard." A City Hall spokesperson said "we expect employees to follow all ethical guidelines."
"On one level, people have reached to say, 'Restructuring is a good idea,' and then when you start doing restructuring, everybody says, 'Everybody is abandoning ship.' That is just not true," Adams said Friday.
So far, the other only official to be charged with a crime is the mayor's former liaison for Muslim community affairs, Mohamed Bahi.
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