NEW YORK — Two high-profile public safety appointments by Mayor Eric Adams have drawnquestions in recent days as his new administration settles into its first month in office. Adams last week appointed Philip Banks as his deputy mayor of public safety. Banks is a former chief of department at the New York City Police Department who resigned abruptly and was later named as an unindicted co-conspirator in a police bribery scheme. Adams also tapped his brother, retired NYPD sergeant Bernard Adams, as a deputy police commissioner. However, Adams has since reduced the role his brother will serve to a lower position, according to reports in the New York Post and New York Times. Adams said Sunday his brother would be overseeing his security detail and the details of other public officials, but the Post and Times reported the demoted role would include only Adams' personal security."I trust my brother. My brother understands me and if I had to put my life in someone’s hands, I want to put it in the hands of the person that I trust deeply," Adams, who was an NYPD captain, told reporters at a news conference Sunday defending the decision to appoint his brother. Banks joined the NYPD in 1986 and rose to the rank of chief of department, the highest ranking uniformed post. In 2014, Banks resigned from the police department, an unexpected move because Commissioner William Bratton had already announced Banks would become the department's first deputy police commissioner, a civilian role. After his resignation, court documents revealed Banks had his cellphone wiretapped over questions about $300,000 in unexplained cash in his and his wife's bank account. Investigators received approval to tap Banks' phone the day before his resignation. Banks was never charged with any crime. In an op-ed in the New York Daily News published last week, Banks said he never broke the law "nor did I ever betray the public trust by abusing my authority as an NYPD official." He also denied any financial wrongdoing but apologized for his association with two men who were convicted in a federal corruption scandal. The bribery scheme centered around Jona Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg who paid officers with gifts and trips in exchange for special favors like police escorts and parking."These two men were attempting to corrupt public officials — and I now regret the time I spent with them," Banks wrote. At the news conference Sunday, Adams defended his appointment of Banks as well."I'm going to pick the best people to do the job to keep my city safe," Adams said, calling Banks "the best person" for the role. As a deputy mayor, Banks will oversee public safety agencies. A deputy mayor for public safety had not been appointed in the city since the 1990s. Adams, however, made public safety the central message of his campaign and has vowed to beef up the department's response to crime.
All data is taken from the source: http://usatoday.com
Article Link: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/01/13/nyc-mayor-eric-adams-brother-deputy-mayor-appointments-draw-scrutiny/9197695002/
#banks #newsradio #kingworldnews #newstodaymsnbc #usnewsworldreport#newstodaycnn #
source
https://corruptionbycops.com/nyc-mayor-eric-adams-faces-questions-over-his-public-safety-picks/
Comments
Post a Comment