Edward A. Caban has decided to step down as New York City Police Commissioner, announcing his resignation via email.
The decision comes just days after FBI agents raided his home and seized his phone as part of a criminal investigation. Caban, 57, had also been under increasing pressure from Mayor Eric Adams’s administration, which, according to sources familiar with the matter, explicitly asked him to resign earlier in the week.
In his farewell letter, Caban explained that his legal troubles no longer allowed him to fully commit to the department he had served for over three decades—a career that began in the South Bronx in 1991 and reached its peak when he became the city’s first Latino police commissioner in July 2023.
“The N.Y.P.D. deserves someone who can solely focus on protecting and serving New York City, which is why — for the good of this city and this department — I have made the difficult decision to resign,” Mr. Caban wrote.
Caban’s attorneys, Russell Capone and Rebekah Donaleski, stated that federal prosecutors informed them their client is not the primary target of the investigation. Both lawyers, former heads of the anti-corruption unit at the same U.S. Attorney’s Office leading the probe, reaffirmed Caban’s full willingness to cooperate with authorities.
Also under investigation is Caban’s twin brother, James, a former police officer who was dismissed from the force in 2001. James Caban now runs a nightclub security business and had his phone seized as well, according to a source close to the investigation.
While none of the officials involved have been formally charged, the latest developments have raised serious questions about Mayor Adams’s administration and the impact of the ongoing federal probes. Adams’s office is currently entangled in four separate investigations involving several high-ranking city officials.
