Federal authorities raided a Queens hotel last week, owned by a significant donor to Mayor Eric Adams who also sought special favors for development projects.
The search warrant came from prosecutors working with Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Breon Peace, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Officials presented the warrant and executed a search early last Thursday, Nov. 14, at the Mayflower Wyndham Garden Hotel in Fresh Meadows, a spokesperson for Housing Works, which operates the hotel, told THE CITY.
Housing Works had said in an initial statement Monday, and in an email to staff last week, that the raided location was in Long Island City, where the Mayflower company also has hotels, including one where Housing Works had operated.
“The areas of interest to law enforcement were not those in which Housing Works operates its short-term residential re-entry program for individuals transitioning from correctional settings,” the spokesperson said.
“Housing Works was not the target of the action by Federal authorities — nor were any of the clients Housing Works serves at this site, agency management, any subsidiaries, subcontractors, etc.”
The hotel is owned by Weihong Hu, a Chinese businesswoman and developer who bundled tens of thousands of dollars of donations to Adams’s 2021 mayoral campaign. Donors to Adams’ current reelection campaign told THE CITY, Documented and The Guardian that family members of Hu’s reimbursed them in cash for their donations to Adams, which is illegal.
The Wyndham Garden was where Winnie Greco, a former aide to Adams, lived in a room paid for by taxpayers, an investigation by THE CITY, Documented and The Guardian found in May.
The Eastern District executed search warrants on Greco’s homes in February. She resigned from her role at City Hall in October.
Hu’s attorney, Kevin Tung, did not immediately respond to a call seeking comment.
Kayla Mamalek, a spokesperson for Adams, said the mayor “has been clear that this administration is dedicated to following and upholding the law and we will continue to cooperate with any law enforcement requests, including those unrelated to the mayor.”
Additional reporting by George Joseph/The Guardian.
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