Federal authorities are investigating allegations that police officers may have paid bribes or offered other gratuities in exchange for promotions, according to a letter filed in court Thursday by a lawyer suing a former top adviser of Mayor Adams.
The lawyer, John Scola, wrote in the letter that his firm has spoken in recent months with “numerous” police union officials, officers and detectives of various ranks who have either “direct knowledge” of the of the “pay to play” investigation, have been interviewed by federal investigators or have been asked to turn over electronic communications to them.
Scola made the claims in a letter to the city seeking documents on behalf of his client, retired sergeant Roxanne Ludemann. Ludemann alleges that former senior mayoral adviser Tim Pearson sexually harassed her, then blocked her promotion in early 2023 when she rebuffed him.
Scola alleges in the letter that Pearson instead approved the promotion of his friend Patrick Gordon, the president of the NYPD Guardians Fraternal organization, a group in which Pearson has long been active. Gordon was promoted to Sgt Special Assignment on Feb 24., 2023.
“(Ludemann) seeks discovery regarding the ‘pay-to-play’ promotion scheme currently under investigation by federal, state, and city law enforcement agencies,” Scola writes in the letter.
“(The city’s) assertion that plaintiff’s discovery demands are based on rumor is both false and misleading. I have personally spoken with numerous individuals possessing direct knowledge of the internal operations of the NYPD and the ongoing investigations that have implicated the department.”
In addition to Ludemann, Scola also represents an active duty chief, Miltiadis Marmara, and two other retired police supervisors who claim Pearson sidelined their careers for backing Ludemann.
Nicholas Biase, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, declined comment as did a spokeswoman for the city Department of Investigation.
Rumors about an investigation into pay for promotions have been circulating for months, ever since early September when the FBI appeared at the homes of key Adams administration officials, including Pearson, Police Commissioner Edward Caban and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks.
Scola’s letter is the first documented indication that such an investigation has been underway.
It has already been reported that Caban’s brother James is under investigation for using his police ties to aid local businesses in avoiding police crackdowns.
Federal authorities in September slapped Mayor Adams’ asylum seeker operations director, Molly Schaeffer, with a subpoena requiring her to turn over records, including communications with Pearson, who had deep involvement in city migrant contracts.