Mayor Eric Adams said he has “a lot of confidence” in NYC Sheriff Anthony Miranda amid recent reports that Miranda is the subject of a city Department of Investigation corruption probe.
Hizzoner gave his full-throated support of the sheriff, whose office is charged with enforcing court orders and seizing property, during his weekly wide-ranging press conference on Sept. 24.
When asked by a reporter, Adams seemed incredulous that the investigation would shake his confidence in Miranda. He also lauded Miranda’s role in leading the city’s push to padlock unlicensed cannabis shops, which his office says has shuttered 1,100 of the roughly 4,000 illegal weed stores since early May.
“What is this [about] not having confidence in Anthony Miranda?” the mayor asked reporters. “This guy has closed down 1,100 smoke shops. Got $78 million of illegal cannabis off of our streets, not in the hands of our children and families.”
DOI spokesperson Diane Struzzi declined to comment on the reported probe.
The mayor’s remarks came in response to reports that the DOI is investigating allegations that he solicited donations to an organization he runs — the National Latino Officers Association — in exchange for letting those who are subjects of his office’s law enforcement actions off the hook. Miranda is the organization’s owner, according to his LinkedIn page.
The investigation stems from a complaint filed against Miranda, according to a report from the New York Post that cited two anonymous sources.
It also follows several reports that the DOI is looking into allegations that the Sheriff’s Office improperly seized cash during its many raids on cannabis shops over the past several months.
The reported probe comes amid a deluge of separate federal investigations surrounding the Adams administration.
Those investigations have ensnared several top Adams administration officials and led to the resignations of his second NYPD commissioner, Edward Caban, and former City Hall Chief Counsel Lisa Zornberg.
Department of Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan and Schools Chancellor David Banks have also announced this week that they will step down around the end of this year.
