City investigators verify former aide to Adams confronted shelter guards
The report from the Department of Investigation closely follows the accounts provided by eyewitnesses.
TroibNews 
NEW YORK — A recent report from city investigators reveals that Timothy Pearson, one of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ closest aides, confronted security guards at a city-operated migrant facility after being asked to identify himself.
According to the Department of Investigation, Pearson, who was removed from his position in September amid several inquiries into his behavior, forcefully entered Touro College in October 2023 without presenting his identification as required by city regulations. The report detailed that he pushed a male security officer aside and physically assaulted a female staff member, causing her to fall backward.
The former NYPD inspector, who held significant influence within the department during his tenure, subsequently had both guards arrested, operating under the false belief that they were the aggressors.
“[Pearson] became verbally abusive and physically aggressive when asked to provide his identification at the entrance to the Touro shelter, and used physical force against staff who tried to prevent him from entering without it,” DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber stated in connection with the report. “His conduct, as evidenced by witness statements and Body Worn Camera footage that DOI reviewed, fell far below our most basic expectations for public servants.”
The DOI serves as the city’s inspector general, functioning with independent oversight over government activities, and frequently collaborates with state and federal law enforcement on public corruption investigations.
The investigation also noted discrepancies between the accounts of Pearson and his driver compared to those of witnesses, revealing that he visited the guards at the precinct after their arrest, which was conducted under misleading pretenses.
Pearson had been a source of controversy during his role as Adams’ senior adviser for public safety. Reports have documented various incidents involving him: delaying the opening of a migrant facility in Brooklyn to direct a lucrative security contract to a friend and donor of the mayor, advocating for the city to engage an AI company — currently under separate investigation by the DOI — while having a personal connection to a contractor for the firm, and quietly overseeing a secretive mayoral agency focused on government efficiency, which led to multiple sexual harassment lawsuits. He has denied any wrongdoing.
In a separate investigation into corruption, federal authorities seized Pearson's phones about a month before his exit.
City Hall has yet to respond to requests for comment.
Lucas Dupont for TROIB News
According to the Department of Investigation, Pearson, who was removed from his position in September amid several inquiries into his behavior, forcefully entered Touro College in October 2023 without presenting his identification as required by city regulations. The report detailed that he pushed a male security officer aside and physically assaulted a female staff member, causing her to fall backward.
The former NYPD inspector, who held significant influence within the department during his tenure, subsequently had both guards arrested, operating under the false belief that they were the aggressors.
“[Pearson] became verbally abusive and physically aggressive when asked to provide his identification at the entrance to the Touro shelter, and used physical force against staff who tried to prevent him from entering without it,” DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber stated in connection with the report. “His conduct, as evidenced by witness statements and Body Worn Camera footage that DOI reviewed, fell far below our most basic expectations for public servants.”
The DOI serves as the city’s inspector general, functioning with independent oversight over government activities, and frequently collaborates with state and federal law enforcement on public corruption investigations.
The investigation also noted discrepancies between the accounts of Pearson and his driver compared to those of witnesses, revealing that he visited the guards at the precinct after their arrest, which was conducted under misleading pretenses.
Pearson had been a source of controversy during his role as Adams’ senior adviser for public safety. Reports have documented various incidents involving him: delaying the opening of a migrant facility in Brooklyn to direct a lucrative security contract to a friend and donor of the mayor, advocating for the city to engage an AI company — currently under separate investigation by the DOI — while having a personal connection to a contractor for the firm, and quietly overseeing a secretive mayoral agency focused on government efficiency, which led to multiple sexual harassment lawsuits. He has denied any wrongdoing.
In a separate investigation into corruption, federal authorities seized Pearson's phones about a month before his exit.
City Hall has yet to respond to requests for comment.
Lucas Dupont for TROIB News
