Federal agents reportedly raided the home of a top adviser to NYC Mayor Eric Adams, reportedly seeking private communications and evidence of travels to China.
As Brooklyn Borough President, Adams traveled to China seven times between 2014 and 2021. The journeys were mostly organized by his key advisor Winnie Greco. Greco, volunteered in Adams’ office and also operated the non-profit Sino-America New York Brooklyn Archway Association Corp. According to The New York Post, both federal prosecutors and the FBI believe that Adams made at least one trip partially funded by the Chinese Communist Party.
The findings were discovered as part of a larger inquiry into claims of public corruption between Greco and Adams, according to a source close to the investigation. The city’s independent Conflicts of Interest Board, which oversees ethics, received an email from the mayor’s office regarding the 2014 trip and reported no apparent violation of the conflict of interest law. However, a December document obtained by The Post indicates that the administration of current Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso was unable to find relevant records of the China visit. Gregory Louis, Reynoso’s general counsel, noted that the previous administration might have kept records outside the office’s infrastructure.
A breakdown of expenses reveals that Sino-America spent about $7,000 on the trip, while the Chinese Communist government contributed $787. The exact evidence the federal government is seeking about Adams’ visits to China, how it fits into a larger investigation, and the content of private emails remain unknown.
While serving as Brooklyn Borough President, Adams used three personal email addresses, including moc.loa@nrecnocfoeciov. Sources claim that information from these emails was not stored on official NYC servers. Greco and her assistants also used non-official emails over that seven-year period. Emails obtained by The Post show that Ingrid Lewis-Martin, then-deputy president of the Brooklyn borough and now senior policy advisor to the mayor, also used a secret Gmail and AOL account.
Greco, 61, currently the city’s head of Asian relations, has long served as a “consultant” to groups supported by the Chinese Communist Party, as reported by The Post last year. In February, FBI officers searched Greco’s Bronx residences. The city’s Department of Investigation has also opened an inquiry into allegations that she misused her position at City Hall for personal benefits, such as house remodeling.
Last year, FBI officials confiscated Adams’ electronic devices as part of an investigation into campaign fundraising and alleged links to the Turkish government. Around the same time, Brianna Suggs, Adams’ primary fundraiser and City Hall employee, had her home raided by federal agents.
