A Utah tech company hired a top NYC official’s brother. A private meeting and $1.4M in contracts followed

Jake Offenhartz, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Ahead of nan 2022 schoolhouse year, nan acquisition exertion institution 21stCentEd was seeking to grow its beingness successful New York City’s nationalist schools. So they turned to a man, Terence Banks, whose caller consulting patient promised to link clients pinch apical authorities stakeholders.

Banks wasn’t a registered lobbyist. His time job, astatine nan time, was arsenic a supervisor successful nan city’s subway system. But he had astatine slightest 1 platinum connection: His older brother, David Banks, is New York City’s schools chancellor, overseeing nan nation’s largest schoolhouse system.

Within a period of nan hire, 21stCentEd had secured a backstage gathering pinch nan schools chancellor. In nan 2 years since that October 2022 meeting, much than $1.4 cardinal successful Education Department costs person flowed to nan company, astir tripling its erstwhile total, records show.

The siblings — on pinch a 3rd brother, Philip Banks, who serves arsenic New York City’s lawman politician of nationalist information — are now enmeshed successful a sprawling national probe that has touched respective high-ranking members of Mayor Eric Adams’ administration.

Federal investigators seized phones past week from each 3 brothers and astatine slightest 3 different apical metropolis officials, including Police Commissioner Edward Caban, who resigned Thursday. Tom Donlon, a retired FBI official, was sworn successful Friday arsenic nan interim constabulary commissioner.

NYPD Police Commissioner Edward A. Caban is sworn successful during a ceremonial extracurricular New York City Police Department 40th Precinct, July 17, 2023, successful New York. | Jeenah Moon, Associated Press, file

The nonstop quality of nan investigation — aliases investigations — has not been disclosed. Among different things, national authorities are investigating nan erstwhile constabulary commissioner’s copy brother, James Caban, a erstwhile constabulary sergeant who runs a nightclub information business.

On Wednesday, a metropolis operations coordinator was fired aft a barroom proprietor successful Brooklyn told NBC New York that he had been pressured by nan adjutant into hiring nan constabulary commissioner’s relative to make sound complaints against his business spell away.

Federal investigators are besides scrutinizing whether Terence Banks’ consulting firm, nan Pearl Alliance, collapsed nan rule by leveraging his family connections to thief backstage companies unafraid metropolis contracts, according to a personification acquainted pinch nan matter. The personification said to The Associated Press connected information of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose accusation astir nan investigations.

All 3 Banks brothers person denied wrongdoing. David and Terence Banks person said they don’t judge they are nan target of nan investigation. But authorities watchdogs opportunity nan family’s overlapping activity successful nan backstage and nationalist assemblage whitethorn person tally afoul of conflict of liking guardrails arsenic good arsenic metropolis and authorities laws connected procurement lobbying.

“It has nan quality of Terence Banks utilizing his family connections to thief his customer and enrich himself,” said Susan Lerner, nan executive head of Common Cause New York, a good-government group.

Timothy Sini, an lawyer for Terence Banks, did not respond to circumstantial questions astir nan consulting firm. But he wrote successful an email, “We person been assured by nan Government that Mr. Banks is not a target of this investigation.”

Speaking astatine a news convention Friday, David Banks said FBI agents had not returned his phone, and he declined to reply questions astir his narration to his brother’s consulting firm. “We are cooperating pinch a national investigation,” he said.

City morals rules prohibition relatives from lobbying each other. At minimum, David Banks would beryllium required to unafraid a waiver from nan city’s Conflicts of Interest Board earlier gathering pinch a institution represented by his brother, according to John Kaehny, nan executive head of nan good-government group Reinvent Albany.

“It’s amazingly arrogant aliases obtuse that David Banks, 1 of nan city’s apical authorities officials, would disregard this basic, commonsense, conflict of liking rule,” Kaehny said successful an email.

Neither nan Department of Education nor nan Conflicts of Interest Board would opportunity whether a waiver was requested.

A spokesperson for nan Department of Education, Nathaniel Styer, said each spending linked to 21stCentEd had travel from individual schools and districts, which tin make purchases of little than $25,000 without nan agency’s approval.

The Utah-based institution trains teachers and provides curriculums focused connected artificial intelligence, robotics, and automation.

Dylan Howard, a spokesperson for nan company, said Terence Banks was hired “to thief 21stCentEd coming our STEM solutions and services to determination makers wrong New York City nationalist schools.” He said they learned of his consulting patient done a 21stCentEd worker who has since near nan company.

The spokesperson could not opportunity really nan gathering pinch nan school’s chancellor came astir aliases whether Terence Banks attended. He added that Terence Banks had provided “no value” to nan institution and that his statement was terminated past December.

21stCentEd was 1 of respective companies pinch metropolis contracts that hired Terence Banks’ consulting firm, according to a website for nan Pearl Alliance that was taken down aft news of nan national investigations emerged past week.

Another listed client, SaferWatch, sells panic buttons to schools and constabulary departments. Since August of 2023, it has been awarded much than $67,000 successful metropolis contracts, according to metropolis records.

The 3rd Banks brother, Philip Banks, maintains wide power complete nan NYPD arsenic lawman politician for nationalist safety. A spokesperson for SaferWatch, Hank Sheinkopf, declined to comment. The NYPD did not respond to email inquiries.

New York City Police Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Philip Banks attends a news conference, successful New York, Jan. 30, 2014. | Associated Press, file

In total, nan Pearl Alliance listed 9 clients pinch millions of dollars successful metropolis contracts, including a package business, a market transportation start-up, and a institution that specializes successful concrete. At slightest 7 of nan companies person past aliases existent contracts pinch nan city.

It wasn’t clear whether nan national enquiry into nan consulting patient tally by Terence Banks was portion of nan investigation into nan constabulary commissioner’s brother.

Ray Martin, nan metropolis charismatic who was said to person pressured a barroom proprietor to prosecute James Caban, was “terminated for cause” Thursday aft nan mayor’s agency learned of nan allegations, according to Fabien Levy, nan lawman politician for communications.

The barroom owner, Shamel Kelly, told WNBC-TV that Martin gave him what felt for illustration an ultimatum past twelvemonth to either salary James Caban aliases consequence having his business unopen down. Kelly said James Caban demanded an upfront interest of $2,500. He said he had been interviewed Thursday by national investigators and nan city’s Department of Investigation. The U.S. attorney’s agency and nan Department of Investigation declined comment.

Attempts to scope Martin were not instantly successful. A cellphone number listed successful his sanction was nary longer working.

A lawyer for James Caban said he “unequivocally denies immoderate wrongdoing” and has cooperated afloat pinch rule enforcement. Once nan investigation is complete, lawyer Sean Hecker said, “it will beryllium clear that these claims are unfounded and deficiency merit.”

Both David and Philip Banks stay successful their authorities positions. An lawyer for Philip Banks, Benjamin Brafman, declined to comment.

At a property briefing Tuesday, Adams noted his narration pinch nan Banks family dates backmost decades, to erstwhile he served successful nan constabulary section nether nan brothers’ father. He said he ne'er met pinch Terence Banks astir metropolis business.

“I’ve known nan Banks families for years,” Adams said. “And my knowing someone, I clasp them to nan aforesaid modular that I clasp myself to.”

Cars move on Park Row thoroughfare adjacent to nan New York City Hall, bottommost center, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, successful New York. | Andres Kudacki, Associated Press