Mayor Adams attributes his difficulty unlocking his phone for federal officials to his dyslexia.

In a recent weekly press briefing, New York City Mayor Eric Adams attributed his inability to unlock his phone during a federal investigation to his dyslexia. The investigation is centered on allegations of misconduct related to campaign donations. Mayor Adams explained that dyslexia affects his ability to process numbers, implying that this condition contributed to his difficulty accessing his device when federal investigators requested it. He emphasized that he regularly shares his phone numbers with staff members.

Documents recently released concerning a now-dismissed federal corruption case against Mayor Adams suggested that federal agents were skeptical of his explanations about the phone. They interpreted his failure to unlock the device as indicative of “consciousness of guilt.” This scrutiny emerged after an incident in November 2023 in which federal agents confronted the mayor in Greenwich Village about his phone. Adams initially claimed he had left the device at City Hall, but GPS data indicated that the phone had been in transit from City Hall toward Washington Square Park and Sixth Avenue at the time of the encounter. An FBI agent’s affidavit captured this discrepancy, suggesting the mayor’s assertions may have been fabricated.

The mayor’s insistence that GPS data could not be disputed led him to label the agents’ interpretations as false. He later alleged that a staff member had taken his phone, complicating further communications with the investigators. When the device was returned the next day, Mayor Adams informed the federal agents that he had forgotten the passcode, a code he had changed two days prior to the original raid conducted by the agents.

Federal agents faced significant challenges in accessing Adams’ electronic devices. In a bid to secure the necessary evidence, they even obtained a judge’s approval to deploy electronics-sniffing dogs to search Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s official residence.

The recently unsealed documents, which total over 1,700 pages, provide insights into the potential case prosecutors might have presented had it proceeded to trial. The investigation included efforts to probe allegations that Adams accepted illegal campaign contributions and bribes, including luxury airline tickets from associates linked to the Turkish government in exchange for political favors. Throughout the ordeal, Mayor Adams has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Additionally, the mayor accused federal authorities of attempting to embarrass him through a planned seizure of his devices during the New York City Marathon, describing their intentions as aimed at public humiliation. The overall landscape of this case highlights the ongoing complexities surrounding political accountability in the Mayor’s office.