Federal agents investigating New York City Mayor Eric Adams were still seizing phones and applying for search warrants days before Justice Department leaders ordered prosecutors to drop the corruption case, according to documents released Friday.
The trove of court records, which had been sealed, opens a window into the criminal case and shows that even as Washington officials were backing away from the prosecution, investigators in Manhattan were moving forward.
The documents also confirm something prosecutors revealed previously: That a federal investigation into whether Adams took improper campaign contributions began in August of 2021, when the Democrat was still in his old job of Brooklyn borough president but was widely expected to win the mayor's race that fall.
Adams has repeatedly said he believed he was prosecuted because, much later, as mayor, he criticized former President Joe Biden's immigration policies.
The investigation first spilled into public view in November 2023, when FBI agents seized Adams' phones and iPad as he was leaving an event in Manhattan. He was charged 10 months later with accepting free travel and illegal campaign contributions from people seeking to buy his influence, including a Turkish diplomat.