Eleven employees of the Brooklyn construction company embroiled in an FBI probe involving one of Mayor Eric Adams’ top fundraisers all made donations to Hizzoner’s campaign on the same day in 2021 — and for nearly identical amounts, records show.
Details of the nearly $14,000 in total donations from KSK Construction Group employees came to light a day after it emerged the feds were investigating if any funds were illegally funneled to Adams’ 2021 mayoral campaign as part of an alleged kickback scheme involving the Williamsburg, Brooklyn-based company and Turkish government.
One of the investigation’s focuses is whether Adams’ campaign conspired with the construction company and Turkish government to use “straw donors” to illegally funnel foreign cash into Hizzoner’s campaign coffers in exchange for favors, law-enforcement sources have said.
A straw donor is a person or company which illegally makes a donation with someone else’s money but using their own name to hide its source.
Sertac Varol, a Queens resident who is listed in campaign filings as a “partner” at KSK — and as giving $1,250 to the Adams campaign — told The City that he doesn’t recall making the donation.
Varol said he doesn’t think he’s ever made a political contribution.
Yet he was one of at least nine KSK employees who are listed in campaign finance filings as having each donated $1,250 — all the same day, May 7, 2021 — to Adams’ campaign, according to records reviewed by The Post.
The company’s owner, Erden Arkan, coughed up slightly more with his contribution coming in at $1,500, the filings show.
The job titles of those listed in the campaign filings range from “project managers” and “construction” to the “finance director.”
The donations were made at a fundraiser organized by the company’s owner, The City reported, citing internal campaign documents.
In total, the event raised $69,720 from a total of 82 donors.
Abigal Nitka — a woman listed as an “engineer/lawyer” for KSK — said, “We’re innocent” when contacted by the outlet.
The Post also has reached out to the employees listed in the filings but has yet to receive comment.
KSK didn’t respond to requests for comment Friday.
Adams’ 2021 campaign counsel Vit Pitta said in a statement, “Immediately upon learning about the federal inquiry, the campaign started an extensive review of all documents and actions by campaign workers connected to the contributors in question.”
The developments come after the feds raided the Brooklyn home of Brianna Suggs — one of the mayor’s top fundraisers — Thursday as part of a broader public-corruption probe.
Investigators have sought documents about records of travel to Turkey by any of the campaign’s employees or associates and documents that could shed light on the campaign’s interactions with the Turkish government, the New York Times reported, citing a copy of the search warrant.
During the raid on Suggs’ home, the feds seized three iPhones, two laptops and a slew of papers and other evidence — including a manila folder labeled “Eric Adams.”
The warrant also stated agents were looking for evidence of the theft of federal funds, wire fraud, conspiracy to steal federal funds and wire fraud conspiracy.
Neither Suggs or the mayor have been arrested or charged with a crime.
Adams, on his part, said he hasn’t been contacted by any law enforcement agency — but he abruptly bailed on a slate of White House immigration meetings in Washington DC to fly back to the Big Apple.
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11 employees of construction company tied to Adams fundraiser probe all donated nearly same amount on same day: records - New York Post
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