Federal authorities subpoena NYC mayor's director of asylum seeker operations

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors have subpoenaed the director overseeing New York City's office for asylum seekers, the latest sign of escalating federal scrutiny of Mayor Eric Adams' administration.

Molly Schaeffer, who leads the city's Office of Asylum Seeker Operations, received the information sharing request from federal authorities Friday morning, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the subpoena.

It was not immediately clear what information federal authorities were seeking or whether the subpoena related to multiple ongoing federal law enforcement investigations swirling around Adams, a first-term Democrat and former police captain.

Schaeffer directed questions to the mayor's deputy mayor for communications, Fabien Levy, who declined to comment on the investigation. “We expect all team members to fully comply with any ongoing inquiry,” Levy wrote in a text message. “Molly Schaeffer is an integral part of our team and works hard every day to deliver for New Yorkers.”

Schaeffer has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Federal prosecutors often issue subpoenas in a hunt for evidence and potential witnesses, not necessarily because they believe the recipient has committed a crime.

Emailed inquiries to the U.S. attorney's offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn were not returned.

Earlier this month, federal authorities seized the phones of several top advisers to the mayor, including his schools chancellor, two deputy mayors and a longtime adviser who oversees contracts at migrant shelters. They also seized the phones of the police commissioner, Edward Caban, who resigned last week.

Those seizures are believed to be related to probes overseen by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan, which are looking at least in part into whether the relatives of top-ranking Adams' aides used their family connection for financial gain.

In July, Adams received his own subpoena from federal prosecutors seeking information from him, his campaign, and City Hall. That request came eight months after FBI agents seized the mayor's phones and an iPad as he was leaving an event in Manhattan. The subpoenas requested information about the mayor’s schedule, his overseas travel and potential connections to the Turkish government, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigations.

Adams also has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

A separate federal probe led by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn is believed to be examining Adam's director of Asian Affairs, Winnie Greco.

Schaeffer has led the office of asylum seeker operations since its creation last year, overseeing the city’s response to the arrival of more than 200,000 migrants and the wide-ranging effort to house and feed the surge of new arrivals.

She previously worked for Adams’ predecessor, Mayor Bill de Blasio.