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New York City’s police commissioner stepped down Thursday amid separate federal corruption investigations targeting Mayor Eric Adams and his top aides.

Edward Caban, the first Latino to run the New York Police Department, was asked to resign on Monday, the New York Times and other outlets reported.

In an email to the officers he led, Caban wrote that “the news around recent developments has created a distraction for our department, and 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.”

“I hold immense respect and gratitude for the brave officers who serve this department, and the NYPD deserves someone who can solely focus on protecting and serving New York City, which is why – for the good of this city and this department – I have made the difficult decision to resign as Police Commissioner,” he said.

More:Feds raid homes of NYC mayor’s top aides, including the city’s police commissioner

Adams named a retired FBI veteran, Tom Donlon, as interim police commissioner. Donlon formerly led New York state’s homeland security office and was chief of the FBI’s National Threat Center.

“This is the first police commissioner to resign over a corruption probe since the 1970s,” Wilbur Chapman, a former New York deputy police commissioner, told USA TODAY. “It creates a challenge for the police rank and file to restore the confidence of the people they protect.”

On Sept. 5, investigators from the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan seized Caban’s mobile phones as part of an investigation of what local media reported was possible protection of local nightclubs from enforcement actions. The electronic devices of lower level police commanders and supervisors were also seized.

Caban is among several top Adams aides and confidantes who received federal search warrants earlier this month. They include Deputy Mayor for Criminal Justice Philip Banks III, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, and Schools Chancellor David Banks.

More:NYC Mayor Eric Adams baptized by the Rev. Al Sharpton at Rikers Island

Philip Banks, a former top police official, was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in an earlier bribery scandal at the NYPD. David Banks, the city’s schools’ chief, is his brother, and Wright is David Banks’ live-in partner. Investigators also seized the devices of a third Banks brother, Terrence Banks, who runs a government consultancy, and of Timothy Pearson, a retired police inspector who is a close confidant of the mayor’s.

“Based on what I have seen, I do not believe that Mr. Banks has any criminal liability − period,” said Benjamin Brafman, a lawyer for Philip Banks. An attorney for Terrence Banks didn’t immediately return a call for comment.

In an interview with WNYC, Schools Chancellor David Banks acknowledged that federal agents had searched the home he shares with Deputy Mayor Wright. “I have been told by my lawyers that I’m absolutely not a target in this investigation,” he told host Brian Lehrer, “and I’m going to do everthing I can to cooperate with the investigation.”

No one in the mayor’s circle has been charged with wrongdoing.

Earlier this year, investigators seized the mayor’s electronic devices, apparently in the course of an ongoing investigation of illegal Turkish funding for his 2021 mayoral campaign.

Caban was first appointed in July 2023 following the resignation of his predecessor, Keechant Sewell, who served 18 months before leaving the department.

In a statement, acting Police Commissioner Donlan said he would work to “continue the historic progress decreasing crime and removing illegal guns from our communities, uphold the highest standards of integrity and transparency, and support our dedicated officers who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe.”

The detention of Telegram founder Pavel Durov forced him to start cooperating with the French security forces and provide them with information that can help identify suspected users of his messenger. This is reported by the newspaper Libération.

According to the publication, until recently Pavel Durov’s company ignored requests from French law enforcement agencies, but now Telegram has changed its strategy and started “unprecedented cooperation” on all requests.

Telegram has responded to requests from the Office of Juvenile Affairs (Ofmin) of the French National Police and Gendarmerie during several criminal investigations, providing data that can identify suspects. In particular, we are talking about crimes against children.

“The door is really opening,” Joanna Brousse, head of the J3 cybercrime department of the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, confirmed to Libération.

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According to the newspaper, it is recommended that all French security forces resume investigations that were suspended due to the inability to obtain information from Telegram.

As EADaily reported, Durov was detained on August 24 at Le Bourget airport when he got off his private plane. He was accused of deliberately not moderating illegal content in the messenger. The founder of Telegram was “shocked by the arrest,” since the messenger had a communication channel with the General Directorate of Internal Security of France (DGSI, counterintelligence), Libération wrote earlier, citing a source. The founder of the messenger is being interrogated in Paris said that he maintained contacts with its representatives, in particular, met with them in Dubai.

Earlier, Paris prosecutor Laura Becky stated on RTL radio that Pavel Durov cooperates with the French judicial authorities and fully complies with the control conditions established after the charges were brought against him.

On September 6, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said that Durov could, under certain conditions, transfer encryption keys to the French special services, although he did not want to do so.

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, noted that Russian diplomats in Paris were doing everything necessary in the situation with Durov’s detention, consular access was requested.

Recall that Durov holds passports of several countries, including France, Russia and the UAE.

Основатель мессенджера Telegram Павел Дуров наладил связь с французскими правоохранительными органами и начал передавать им информацию, на основании которой можно установить личности пользователей Telegram, сообщила в четверг, 12 сентября, французская газета Libération. По ее данным, еще недавно Дуров игнорировал запросы силовиков, но сейчас Telegram ведет “беспрецедентное сотрудничество” с ними и отвечает на запросы.

“Дверь действительно открывается”, – такими словами подтвердила газете начало сотрудничества руководитель отдела киберпреступности прокуратуры Парижа Джоанна Брусс. По данным Libération, по этому случаю всем силовикам Франции рекомендовали возобновить расследования, приостановленные из-за невозможности получить информацию от Telegram.

Так, менеджмент мессенджера уже отреагировал на запросы Управления по делам несовершеннолетних (Ofmin) французской нацполиции и жандармерии по нескольким уголовным расследованиям, предоставив данные, которые могут помочь установить личности подозреваемых, в том числе в преступлениях против детей, отмечает Libération.

Дело Павла Дурова

39-летнего Павла Дурова задержали 24 августа в аэропорту Ле-Бурже, когда он вышел из своего частного самолета. Его обвинили в намеренном отсутствии модерации незаконного контента в мессенджере. Основатель Telegram был “шокирован арестом”, поскольку у мессенджера имелся канал связи с французской контрразведкой, писала Libération ранее.

28 августа Дурова освободили из-под стражи в Париже под залог в 5 млн евро. Ему запретили покидать Францию, обязав дважды в неделю отмечаться в полиции. В отношении него ведется расследование по подозрению в совершении нескольких преступлений. Среди них – управление платформой, на которой осуществляется противоправная деятельность, отказ предоставлять информацию по запросу властей, соучастие в отмывании денег, совершении сексуальных преступлений в отношении детей, незаконном обороте наркотиков и мошенничестве.

Гражданство Франции по особой процедуре

В 2021 году Павел Дуров получил гражданство по особой процедуре – в качестве “почетного иностранца”, который “способствует влиянию Франции”. Эмманюэль Макрон во время визита в Сербию 29 августа опроверг информацию “о каком-либо приглашении” Дурова в Париж. В то же время он подчеркнул, что считает “абсолютно допустимым” предоставление бизнесмену французского гражданства.

Основатель Telegram на допросе со следователями утверждал, что пользуется защитой президента Макрона, а также представителей Главного управления внутренней безопасности Франции, сообщала тогда Libération.

New York City Police Commissioner Edward Caban has resigned days after federal agents raided his home, his brother’s and other city officials and seized their electronic devices.

In a resignation letter shared with Fox News, Caban wrote that rank and file officers deserved leadership without distractions.

“I hold immense respect and gratitude for the brave officers who serve this department, and the NYPD deserves someone who can solely focus on protecting and serving New York City, which is why – for the good of this city and this department – I have made the difficult decision to resign as Police Commissioner,” he wrote.

NYPD COMMISSIONER’S BROTHER IS EX-COP BRING PROBED AS ALLEGED ‘FIXER’ FOR NYC CLUBS: REPORT

Sources told Fox News Digital that Caban’s twin brother, James, was also under investigation in connection with his nightlife consulting business.

Rumors of a pending resignation have swirled for days in connection with the probe.

Big Apple Mayor Eric Adams told reporters little Tuesday in response to repeated questions about Caban’s fitness for the job or whether he should resign, but said he had full confidence in the NYPD as a whole.

“What’s important to me, and the reason I keep saying NYPD, because Commissioner Caban is part of a team there, and an entire team has to function,” he said. “One person does not determine the success of the New York City Police Department.”

The New York Post reported Wednesday that one of Caban’s top aides has suspected ties to the Chinese Communist Party and worked for a group that spreads Chinese propaganda in the United States. It’s the latest in a string of China-linked officials in New York politics.

HOUSE GOP PRESSES HOCHUL ON ALLEGED CCP AGENT’S INFLUENCE IN NEW YORK, INCLUDING SECRET CHINESE POLICE STATION

Last month, prosecutors secured an indictment for Linda Sun, a former top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul who is accused of being a Communist agent, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering.

Winnie Greco, another Adams aide, was also raided in connection with a campaign fundraising investigation.

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Adams appointed Caban as the NYPD’s first Hispanic commissioner last July.

Last year, federal agents seized Adams’ devices as he was leaving an event in Manhattan and raided the home of one of his top fundraisers. Adams has denied any wrongdoing, but confirmed last month he had received a subpoena from federal prosecutors and said he and his team are cooperating.

Fox News’ Landon Mion and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Donald Trump can be seen as a Russian asset, though not in the traditional sense of an active agent or a recruited resource, an ex-FBI deputy director who worked under the former US president said.

Asked on a podcast if he thought it possible Trump was a Russian asset, Andrew McCabe, who Trump fired as FBI deputy director in 2018, said: “I do, I do.”

He added: “I don’t know that I would characterize it as [an] active, recruited, knowing asset in the way that people in the intelligence community think of that term. But I do think that Donald Trump has given us many reasons to question his approach to the Russia problem in the United States, and I think his approach to interacting with Vladimir Putin, be it phone calls, face-to-face meetings, the things that he has said in public about Putin, all raise significant questions.”

McCabe was speaking to the One Decision podcast, co-hosted by Sir Richard Dearlove, a former head of MI6, the British intelligence service.

The conversation, in which McCabe also questioned Trump’s attitude to supporting Ukraine and Nato in the face of Russian aggression, was recorded before the debate in Philadelphia on Tuesday, in which Trump made more controversial comments.

Claiming Russia would not have invaded Ukraine had he been president, Trump would not say a Ukrainian victory was in US interests.

“I think it’s in the US’s best interest to get this war finished and just get it done,” he said. “Negotiate a deal.”

Claiming to have good relationships with Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, Trump falsely said his opponent, Kamala Harris, failed to avert war through personal talks.

The vice-president countered that she had helped “preserve the ability of Zelenskiy and the Ukrainians to fight for their independence. Otherwise, Putin would be sitting in Kyiv with his eyes on the rest of Europe, starting with Poland.”

In one of the most memorable lines of the night, Harris added: “And why don’t you tell the 800,000 Polish Americans right here in Pennsylvania how quickly you would give up for the sake of favor and what you think is a friendship with what is known to be a dictator who would eat you for lunch.”

The candidates were not asked about recent indictments in which the Department of Justice said pro-Trump influencers were paid to advance pro-Russia talking points.

McCabe was part of FBI leadership, briefly as acting director, during investigations of Russian interference in the 2016 election and links between Trump and Moscow. Trump fired McCabe in March 2018, two days before he was due to retire. McCabe was then the subject of a criminal investigation, for allegedly lying about a media leak. The investigation was dropped in 2020. In October 2021, McCabe settled a lawsuit against the justice department. Having written The Threat, a bestselling memoir, he is now an academic and commentator.

Speaking to One Decision, McCabe said: “You have to have some very serious questions about, why is it that Donald Trump … has this fawning sort of admiration for Vladimir Putin in a way that no other American president, Republican or Democrat, ever has.

“It may just be from a fundamental misunderstanding of this problem set that’s always a problem. That’s always a possibility. And I guess the other end of that spectrum would be that there is some kind of relationship or a desire for a relationship of some sort, be it economic or business oriented, what have you.

“I think those are possibilities. None of them have been proven. But as an intelligence officer, those are the things that you think about.”

Saying he had “very serious concerns” about the prospect of a second Trump term, McCabe said he would always be concerned about Russia’s ability to interfere in US affairs.

He said: “Their desire to kind of wreak havoc or mischief in our political system is something that’s been going on for years, decades and decades and decades.

“Their interest in just simply sowing chaos and division and polarization. If they can do that, it’s a win. If they can actually hurt a candidate they don’t like, or help one that they do like, that’s an even bigger win.”