Feds probe whether NYC Council member, Hochul aide took bribes to help migrant shelter provider
NEW YORK — Federal prosecutors are investigating whether a New York City Council member and her sister, Gov. aide Kathy Hochul, accepted bribes or kickbacks in connection with the award of city funds to a migrant housing provider, according to a copy of a search warrant obtained by The Associated Press.
The warrant, signed March 19, seeks evidence of possible criminal violations involving council member Farah Louis, a Brooklyn Democrat, and Debbie Louis, who serves as Hochul’s deputy secretary for New York City intergovernmental affairs.
He also names Edu Hermelyn, the husband of state Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who also chairs the Brooklyn Democratic Party.
A spokesperson for Hochul confirmed that Debbie Louis was placed on leave last week after the governor learned of the federal corruption investigation. A person who answered a phone number listed for Louis quickly hung up after being asked about the investigation.
Voicemails seeking comment from Farah Louis and Edu Hermelyn were not returned.
The warrant, for a phone connected to the investigation, says prosecutors are seeking information about whether the three received benefits in exchange for actions taken on behalf of BHRAGS Home Care Inc., a Brooklyn-based service provider that previously focused on in-home medical care.
BHRAGS was awarded its first contract to run an emergency migrant shelter in 2022, as an influx of asylum seekers began arriving in the city. Since then, the company has won more than a dozen homeless services contracts totaling more than $200 million.
A lawyer for BHRAGS executive director Roberto Samedy declined to comment.
A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn declined to comment.
The existence of a search warrant does not necessarily indicate that prosecutors plan to bring criminal charges, just that investigators have persuaded a magistrate judge to allow them to dig deeper and seize evidence.
Sisters Louis and Heremlyn are prominent figures on the Brooklyn Democratic County Committee, which has faced an avalanche of scandals in recent years.
Hermelyn briefly served as a senior advisor to former New York City Mayor Eric Adams but resigned amid questions about whether his position as Brooklyn district leader violated rules prohibiting dual government roles.
He later advised former Governor Andrew Cuomo during his failed mayoral bid.
