NYC sheriff probed by DOI over alleged pay-to-play scheme involving law enforcement group he chairs: sources

New York City Sheriff Anthony Miranda is under investigation over an allegation he solicited donations for a law enforcement organization he leads in exchange for looking the other way on subjects of enforcement, sources told The Post.

The probe is being handled by the Department of Investigation after a complaint was recently lodged against Miranda, two sources said – as Mayor Eric Adams’ administration has been engulfed in a series of separate, federal inquiries.

City investigators are looking into whether Miranda sought out donations to the National Latino Officers Association by offering to ignore certain law enforcement issues, according to the sources.

Miranda is the association’s chair, according to the group’s website.  

“NLOA represents both uniform and civilian members who are employed by law enforcement agencies on the city, state, and federal level and represents non-law enforcement personnel employed in the private and public sectors,” the association says on its website.

Messages sent to the association’s general email and to Miranda’s listed email were not immediately returned.

City Hall and the DOI also did not immediately return emails seeking comment.

The DOI is also looking into whether the sheriff’s office improperly seized cash from unlicensed pot shops during raids that took place in recent months, the Daily News reported, citing sources.

Miranda said during a council hearing last week he did not believe sheriff personnel had seized any cash during the raids.

He claimed the vouchering process for property seized has been designated with the NYPD.

“They are the ones who voucher the property depending on the circumstances of the location,” Miranda said during last Tuesday’s hearing on the mayor’s undertaking of cannabis enforcement laws. “They will either voucher it as safekeeping or voucher it as investigatory evidence depending on the different circumstances.”

But union officials, who have feuded with Miranda, said the sheriff’s statements about the vouchering process “weren’t true” and deputy sheriffs have still been asked to voucher cash and products, the Daily News reported.

Politico first reported the DOI investigation into Miranda and the department on Friday, though it did not specify the allegations.

The DOI is the city’s independent oversight body in charge of tackling corruption in Gotham.  

Adams selected Miranda to lead the sheriff’s department in May 2022.

The first-term mayor and his aides have faced a barrage of federal probes over the last year, including his campaign’s ties to Turkey.

The feds have also zeroed in on top City Hall and NYPD officials in separate probes, leading to raids of their homes.