Mayor Eric Adams on Friday again insisting his interim Police Commissioner Tom Donlon wasn’t leaving his administration anytime soon. 

“I’ve said this a thousand times, you’ve heard me say it at our off topics. When it’s time to make personnel announcements, we do so,” Adams said. “People who want to leak information or think they have some of these sources, then they are going to prematurely write stories.”

What You Need To Know

  • Mayor Eric Adams continued to dispute reports his interim Police Commissioner Tom Donlon is stepping down 

  • Reports started swirling on Thursday that Donlon could step down as soon as Friday. Donlon's replacement would be the fourth police commissioner in two years. 

  • Adams also denied reports that Gov. Kathy Hochul is pulling any strings as he tries to rebuild his inner cabinet amid a slew of resignations.

Donlon has been in office for only a month. He came in as a temporary head of the police department after embattled commissioner Edward Caban resigned, following his phone being seized by federal investigators. 

Donlon’s tenure was immediately rocked when federal officials also executed a search warrant at his homes and seized materials unrelated to his police work. 

On Thursday, reports started swirling that the interim police commissioner was departing, but City Hall and the mayor have repeatedly refuted the claims. 

“Whomever is going to be the police commissioner in the City of New York, I am going to vet and make sure they continue the success we saw under Commissioner Sewell, under Commissioner Caban and now that we’re seeing under Commissioner Donlon,”Adams said.  

Whoever replaces Donlon will be the fourth commissioner in two years to head the NYPD.

Names that have been floated as possible replacements include current Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch and former Deputy Police Commissioner Ben Tucker. 

“People want to do other things, but the foundation of our administration is very much still in place. And we have a deep bench. We have a deep bench in the city and we have a deep bench in our administration,” Adams said.

News of a shakeup at the police department comes as two school safety units have now been connected to federal probes. 

Kevin Taylor, a former Commanding Officer of Manhattan North and the commanding officer of the school safety unit, was hit by federal officials on Thursday afternoon, according to sources. Taylor’s phone was also seized. 

The FBI then went to the school safety offices at the Queens Plaza Noth.

Sources told NY1 the actions were in connection to an investigation into former Adams senior official Tim Pearson. 

In a statement on Friday, Deputy Mayor for Communications Fabien Levy said: “Like we always say, we expect all employees to comply with any law enforcement inquiry.”

Also on Friday, Adams weighed in on recent high-profile resignations and denied that Gov. Kathy Hochul has been pulling any strings behind the scenes, as he looks to hold on to his mayoralty. 

“Do you think I would be a puppet mayor and allow others to pick my administration? Is that who I am? Is that who I am as a person? The governor is a partner. She’s always been very supportive of my entire time in [the] office. We’ve done some great things together,” he said.