By Jack Morphet

New York City Mayor Eric Adams suspended a former City Hall aide who was volunteering on his re-election campaign after she handed a potato chip bag full of cash to a reporter.

The volunteer, Winnie Greco, was a former fundraiser for Adams whose house was searched by federal agents last year amid multiple federal corruption probes into the mayor and some of his aides. Greco resigned as the mayor's director of Asian affairs not long after her home was searched.

Greco gave around $300 in cash to the reporter following a campaign event in Harlem on Wednesday. The bills were tucked inside a red envelope that had been stuffed into an open bag of sour cream and onion chips.

The reporter, Katie Honan, who works for the nonprofit news site The City, said she didn't look inside the bag until she and Greco had separated. The two had briefly met after the campaign event at a Whole Foods market, she said on Thursday. She had initially refused the bag of chips -- unaware there was money inside -- but Greco insisted she take it, Honan said.

Honan looked in the bag as she reached a nearby subway, and spotted the red envelope, she said. Honan hoped it would be information leading her to a reporting scoop -- but instead found cash, she said.

"I called Winnie and told her 'If you're still in Whole Foods, I cannot accept this. This is really serious,'" Honan said. "She said, 'We can meet later, it's OK'. She told me to not tell anyone we spoke."

The City contacted the city's Department of Investigation, the agency tasked with investigating government corruption and misconduct. DOI took possession of the untouched money and chips.

Greco's lawyer on Thursday said the money was meant as a gift. The former fundraiser was "embarrassed and apologetic" about the misunderstanding, he said.

"This was no pay off," said lawyer Steven Brill. "In Chinese culture, handing someone an envelope of cash is a gesture of affection and token of appreciation for friendship."

Honan, who covers City Hall and local politics, said she's written about Greco in the past and the two have a cordial relationship. Greco didn't say anything on Wednesday to suggest the money was intended to buy positive coverage, according to Honan.

The Adams campaign said the mayor wasn't aware of Greco's actions and has since removed her from the re-election campaign.

"We are shocked by these reports," Adams' campaign spokesman, Todd Shapiro, said.

Adams is currently seeking a second term in office in the November elections, this time as an independent. Adams didn't run in the Democratic primary in June, saying last year's federal bribery case against him had made it impossible to mount a proper campaign.

Manhattan federal prosecutors had charged Adams with taking illegal campaign contributions from Turkey. Adams denied wrongdoing and in April a federal judge dismissed the bribery case after the Justice Department ordered prosecutors to drop it.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 21, 2025 13:32 ET (17:32 GMT)

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