FBI seizes NYC mayor’s phone ahead of expected unsealing of indictment

NEW YORK (AP) — FBI agents entered the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams and seized his phone early Thursday morning, hours before an indictment detailing criminal charges against the Democrat was expected to be made public.

Adams was indicted by a grand jury on federal criminal charges that remain sealed, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke with The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

“Federal agents appeared this morning at Gracie Mansion in an effort to create a spectacle (again) and take Mayor Adams phone (again),” Adams’ lawyer, Alex Spiro, said in a statement, adding that the mayor had not been arrested. “They send a dozen agents to pick up a phone when we would have happily turned it in.”

Federal law enforcement agents were seen entering the mayor’s Manhattan residence at dawn Wednesday, with several vehicles bearing federal law enforcement placards parked outside.

The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan has declined to comment on the investigation. An FBI spokesperson declined to comment. A spokesperson for the mayor did not immediately respond to questions Thursday morning.

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