FBI agents search home of top NYPD official amid allegations he demanded sex for overtime pay

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FBI agents search home of top NYPD official amid allegations he demanded sex for overtime pay

2025-01-03 02:14 Last Updated At：02:42

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal agents on Thursday searched the home of a former top New York City police official who resigned late last month after he was accused of demanding sex from a subordinate in exchange for opportunities to earn extra pay.

Law enforcement officials executed warrants on multiple locations, including the home of Jeffrey Maddrey, the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the NYPD, as part of a joint investigation, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a statement.

An FBI spokesperson confirmed that agents had carried out “court-authorized law enforcement activity” at Maddrey’s Queens address. It was not immediately known what other locations were searched.

“At my direction, the Internal Affairs Bureau of the New York City Police Department is working with law enforcement authorities to investigate allegations against former Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey,” Tisch said in a statement.

Maddrey was accused last month of engaging in a “quid pro quo sexual harassment” with a subordinate and coercing her to “perform unwanted sexual favors in exchange for overtime opportunities.”

His accuser, Quathisha Epps, was the NYPD’s top earner in fiscal year 2024, pulling in more than $400,000 while holding an administrative position in Maddrey’s office. Her lawyer, Eric Sanders, said Maddrey repeatedly demanded sexual favors inside police headquarters and threatened her with retaliation if she did not comply.

Maddrey, through his lawyer, admitted to having a “consensual, adult relationship” with the woman, but denied any sexual misconduct. He resigned days after the allegations became public.

Tisch directed questions to the U.S. Attorney’s office, which declined to comment. An attorney for Maddrey also did not return an inquiry on Thursday.

The federal warrants come on top of investigations into the alleged abuse by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the city’s Department of Investigation.

“These are extremely serious and disturbing claims that allegedly occurred at N.Y.P.D. headquarters in Manhattan,” a spokesperson for Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg said in a statement.

Maddrey, who joined the police department in 1991, was a longtime ally of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain who now faces federal charges of bribery and soliciting illegal foreign campaign contributions.

Maddrey’s resignation follows months of scandal and leadership turnover at the NYPD, the nation’s largest police department. In September, Commissioner Edward Caban resigned after federal agents searched his home as part of a wide-ranging inquiry into Adams’ inner circle.

Timothy Pearson, another Adams adviser with wide latitude over the NYPD, then resigned after investigators seized devices and cash from his home. He has also been accused of sexual harassment by multiple colleagues.

Neither Pearson nor Caban have been criminally charged, and both have denied wrongdoing.

Adams said the city’s current police commissioner would undertake a review of overtime spending.

“She’s conducting her review internally, and we’ll make the determination on how we’re moving forward with these allegations,” he said.

Hillary Clinton, George Soros and Denzel Washington received the highest US civilian honor

2025-01-05 03:48 Last Updated At：03:51

WASHINGTON (AP) — In the East Room of the White House on a particularly frigid Saturday afternoon, President Joe Biden bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 of the most famous names in politics, sports, entertainment, civil rights, LGBTQ+ advocacy and science.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton aroused a standing ovation from the crowd as she received her medal. Clinton was accompanied to the event by her husband former President Bill Clinton, daughter Chelsea Clinton and grandchildren. Democratic philanthropist George Soros and actor-director Denzel Washington were also awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor in a White House ceremony.

“For the final time as president I have the honor bestowing the Medal of Freedom, our nation’s highest civilian honor, on a group of extraordinary, truly extraordinary people, who gave their sacred effort, their sacred effort, to shape the culture and the cause of America,” Biden said in his opening remarks.

“Let me just say to each of you, thank you, thank you, thank you for all you’ve done to help this country," Biden said Saturday.

Four medals were awarded posthumously. They went to George W. Romney, who served as both a Michigan governor and secretary of housing and urban development; former Attorney General and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy; Ash Carter, a former secretary of defense; and Fannie Lou Hamer, who founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and laid the groundwork for the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Kennedy is father to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for health and human services secretary. Biden said, “Bobby is one of my true political heroes. I love and I miss him dearly.”

Romney is the father of former Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, one of Trump's strongest conservative critics.

Biden has days left in the Presidential office and has spent the last few days issuing awards and medals to valiant military veterans, courageous law enforcement officials and exceptional Americans.

The White House said the Medal of Freedom recipients have made “exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.”

Major philanthropists receiving the award include Spanish American chef José Andrés, whose World Central Kitchen charity has become one of the world's most recognized food relief organizations, and Bono, the front man for rock band U2 and a social justice activist.

Soros' son Alex Soros accepted the medal on his father's behalf. In an emailed statement, Soros said: “As an immigrant who found freedom and prosperity in America, I am deeply moved by this honor."

Sports and entertainment stars recognized include professional soccer player Lionel Messi, who did not attend the event; retired Los Angeles Lakers basketball legend and businessman Earvin “Magic” Johnson; actor Michael J. Fox, who is an outspoken advocate for Parkinson’s disease research and development; and William Sanford Nye, known to generations of students as “Bill Nye the Science Guy."

Other awardees include conservationist Jane Goodall; longtime Vogue Magazine editor-in-chief Anna Wintour; American fashion designer Ralph Lauren; American Film Institute founder George Stevens Jr.; entrepreneur and LGBTQ+ activist Tim Gill; and David Rubenstein, co-founder of The Carlyle Group global investment firm.

Lauren is the first fashion designer to receive the honor.

Last year, Biden bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom on 19 people, including the late Medgar Evers, House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina and actor Michelle Yeoh.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom was awarded 654 times between 1963 and 2024, according to the Congressional Research Service. Notable Medal of Freedom recipients from the past include Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Maya Angelou and Mother Teresa.