NYC City Hall aide Rana Abbasova suspended during FBI probe of Adams campaign fundraising is cooperating with feds: sources
A City Hall aide who was suspended for inappropriate conduct amid an FBI probe into Mayor Eric Adams’ campaign fundraising is cooperating with the feds, sources confirmed to The Post.
The Adams staffer who turned on her boss has been identified by sources as Rana Abbasova, whose home was raided by the FBI as part of the federal corruption investigation into the mayor’s 2021 campaign.
After Abbasova’s New Jersey house was raided in November 2023, sources have said she urged fellow City Hall staffers to delete texts, leading to her suspension.
The “improper” behavior was reported to the feds, and City Hall placed her on leave.
Federal investigators then obtained a court warrant to retrieve Adams’ mobile devices to determine if he had also received messages from Abbasova.
The mayor did not receive a message, the source said.
It’s unclear when Abbasova — the director of protocol in the Office for International Affairs — began cooperating with the FBI and what information she may have shared.
The FBI is probing whether Adams’ team conspired with the Turkish government to fuel his campaign with foreign donations and whether he urged the FDNY to fast-track permits for a new Turkish Consulate that had failed earlier safety inspection.
Neither Adams, Abbasova nor any member of his campaign has been accused of any wrongdoing.
Abbasova, whose salary is listed as $80,651, performed advanced planning and logistics for mayoral events as part of her role, sources said.
The Azerbaijan native also worked for Adams when he served as Brooklyn Borough President, serving as a liaison between him and the Turkish community.
City Hall declined to comment, referring questions to the mayor’s 2021 campaign.
Brendan McGuire, Adam’s former chief counsel at City Hall who now represents him in the FBI investigation, told The New York Times that Abbasova’s cooperation was “not a new or meaningful development.”
“It is our understanding that Ms. Abbasova has been talking to investigators since her improper conduct was reported by the administration in November,” he said in a statement, noting that the Adams administration had reported her inappropriate behavior following the search of her home.
