A New York City councilwoman and an aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) are being targeted in a corruption investigation into contracts with a migrant shelter provider.
Councilwoman Farah Louis and her sister Debbie Louis, Hochul’s assistant secretary of New York City intergovernmental affairs, were targeted in a March 19 search warrant seeking evidence of possible criminal violations, the Associated Press reported. The duo, and the husband of the Brooklyn Democratic Party chairwoman, are suspected of accepting bribes or kickbacks in connection with a city contract with a migrant shelter provider.
The three are considered heavy hitters within New York City politics.
A spokesperson for Hochul told the outlet that Debbie Louis was placed on leave after the governor became aware of the corruption investigation.
The March 19 search warrant was seeking a phone. The three are accused of receiving benefits in exchange for the favorable treatment of BHFRAGS Home Care Inc., a nonprofit organization that provides in-home services to the sick and elderly. The organization expanded its operations after the 2022 influx of immigrants, some of whom were bused to the city by Republican-led states overwhelmed by the border crisis at the time.
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The organization received over $200 million in contracts from the Department of Homeless Services.
Corruption investigations plagued the last years of former New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s administration. The former mayor was famously indicted on corruption charges, tanking his reelection chances.
