New York City police commissioner resigns after his phone was seized in federal investigation

New York AP New York City Police Commissioner Edward kaban resigned Thursday one week after it emerged that his phone was seized as part of a federal investigation that touched several members of Mayor Eric Adams Inner Circle kaban who had been in charge of the nation's largest Police Department for about 15 months said in an email to staff that he made the decision to resign after the news around recent developments had created a distraction for our department I am unwilling to let my attention be on anything other than our important work or the safety of the men and women of the NYPD he added in the email obtained by the Associated Press at a news conference Thursday Adams praised kaban for making our city safer and said he had named Tom donlin a retired FBI official as the interim police Comm commissioner donlin previously served as the chief of the FBI's National threat Center and once led the office of Homeland Security in New York before starting his own security firm in 2020 he helped lead the investigation into the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and investigated the 1998 US Embassy bombings and USS coal bombing donlin said in a statement he was honored and humbled to head head the greatest law enforcement agency in the world and that his priorities would include removing illegal guns from the community kaban resignation marks the first highlevel departure from the Adams Administration since Federal investigators seized phone sept four from several members of the mayor's Inner Circle including two Deputy Mayors the school's chancellor and one of Adam's top advisors the subject of the investigation which is being led by us attorney's office in Manhattan remains unclear as as whether Federal authorities were seeking information linked to one investigation or several kaban lawyers Russell Capone and Rebecca donaleski said in a statement Thursday they had been told by the government that he is not a target of any investigation being conducted by the southern district of New York and he expects to cooperate fully with the government the justice department defines a target of an investigation as someone whom prosecutors or a grand jury have gathered substantial evidence against that links the person to a crime that's in contrast to a subject which is someone whose conduct is merely within the scope of the investigation but those definitions are notoriously fluid and a person not seen as a technical Target Target one day can become a Target the next as new information develops Federal authorities are also investigating koban's twin brother James kaban a former NYPD Sergeant who runs a nightclub security business according to a person familiar with the matter the person could not publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity James kaban unequivocally denies any wrongdoing his lawyer Sean Hecker said in a statement his work as a consultant and acting as a liaison between the department and a private company is perfectly legal especially given his previous career as a NYPD officer Hecker continued the justice department defines a target of an investigation as someone whom prosecutors are a Gran jury have gathered substantial evidence against that links the person to a crime that's in contrast to a subject which is someone whose conduct is merely within the scope of the investigation but those definitions are notoriously fluid and a person not seen as a technical Target one day can become a Target the next as new information develops Federal authorities are also investigating kab's twin brother James kaban a former nyp Sergeant who runs a nightclub security business according to a person familiar with the matter the person could not publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity James kaban unequivocally denies any wrongdoing his lawyer Sean Hecker said in a statement his work as a consultant and acting as a liaison between the department and a private company is perfectly legal especially given his previous career as a NYPD officer Hecker continued the investigation that led to Edward kaban devices being seized is not believed to be tied to a probe that led Federal investigators to seize Adam's devices last November according to two people familiar with the matter they spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly kaban 57 was the first Latino to lead the 179 year-old NYPD he started as a patrol officer in 1991 in the Bronx where he grew up and worked in precincts across the city as he was promoted his father retired detective Juan kaban had served with Adams a former police captain when they were both on the city's Transit Police Force three of koban's Brothers were also police officers he was the Department's second in command before being named commissioner last year kaban replaced kichin Su the first woman to lead the force she resigned 18 months into a tenure clouded by speculation that she was not truly in charge as commissioner kaban presided over continuing declines in some major crime categories including shootings and murders but was also criticized for his handling of Officer discipline including two officers who did not face any internal disciplinary action in the fatal shooting of a black man kaasi tro inside his Bronx apartment in 2019 donlan's appointment marks the first time in more than two decades that someone without prior experience serving in a local police department will lead the NYPD close observers of the agency described the move as both politically strategic and potentially risky it gives the mayor some credibility at a time when his police department and administration are facing Federal investigations said Jeffrey Fagan a Colombia law school Professor focused on policing at the same time will someone with no experience in a complex Municipal Police Department and no real power base be able to clean up this mess quote