Federal prosecutors are investigating whether New York City councilmember Farah Louis and her sister, Debbie Louis, an aide to Governor Kathy Hochul, accepted bribes or kickbacks related to city funds for a migrant shelter provider, according to a search warrant obtained by the Associated Press.
The warrant, signed on 19 March, seeks evidence of possible criminal violations involving Farah Louis, a Brooklyn Democrat, and Debbie Louis, who serves as Hochul’s assistant secretary of New York City intergovernmental affairs. It also names Edu Hermelyn, husband of state assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who 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 investigation. The warrant seeks information about whether the three received benefits in exchange for actions on behalf of BHRAGS Home Care Inc, a Brooklyn-based service provider that has received over $200m in contracts for homeless services since 2022.
An attorney for BHRAGS executive director Roberto Samedy declined to comment. A spokesperson for the US attorney’s office in Brooklyn also declined to comment. The existence of a warrant does not necessarily indicate charges will be filed, only that investigators have permission to gather evidence.
The Louis sisters and Hermelyn are prominent in Brooklyn’s Democratic county committee, which has faced several scandals. Hermelyn previously served as a senior adviser to former mayor Eric Adams but resigned over dual government role issues, and later advised former governor Andrew Cuomo.
