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

By CAROLYN THOMPSON and JAKE OFFENHARTZ The Associated Press

FILE - Former NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey attends a press conference, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Yuki Iwamura]

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.