The socialite, who co-founded a charity with Mayor Eric Adams' brother, rode along with Mr. Hizzoner's security detail to President Trump's inauguration. Experts call this a classic example of “ethical sloppiness” at City Hall.
Model-turned-philanthropist Alisa Lorber received VIP treatment Monday as she effortlessly navigated a security shutdown in Washington, D.C., while riding in an SUV with the mayor's caravan.
“I drove safely to the inauguration,” Roeber boasted in a video posted on social media and seen by the Post.
“Roads are closed but not for us,” she captioned her proud post, punctuated with a flexing biceps emoji.
Another video posted by an internet influencer showed the mayor's guards criss-crossing the capital, their cruisers' lights flashing and sirens blaring as they passed red lights.
“All roads closed! Mission Impossible,” she wrote.
Lorber, who co-founded the nonprofit organization Angels Helpers with the mayor's brother Bernard Adams, was in Washington, D.C., to attend a swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol when a representative for the mayor spoke to him early Monday morning. He admitted that he had come to pick him up.
When asked why the mayor took a detour to scoop her, she replied, “I don't know.”
While the mayor was in a suburban car leading the caravan, Mr. Rover appears to have been in one car.
Ethics experts criticized Mr. Adams for using his police entourage as a rideshare, especially considering that Mr. Lorber had no formal reason to detail the mayor.
“Mayors need to be very careful and be aware of the misuse of security details,” said John Kaney, director of Reinvent Albany, a nonprofit good government organization.
“A security guard shouldn't be the driver of a mayor's friend,” Kaney said, but he never said it would violate city rules.
“It was a poor judgment and a bad look,” he added, pointing to the ethics scandal that plagued former Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The rules governing police details for city employees recently came under fire from the Bureau of Investigation, which said the NYPD did not adequately define policies for its officers and contributed to the security failures of Adams' predecessor.
The city's Conflict of Interest Commission is responsible for overseeing whether employees use security inappropriately, but the rules are subjective and not strictly defined.
Mr. de Blasio was fined nearly $500,000 for abusing his security detail during his failed presidential bid, traveling the country with only 1 to 2 percentage points in the polls.
DOI De Blasio's misconduct revealed He orders his subordinates to transport his son Dante around town in a taxi while he is in office.
Richard Briffault, former chairman of the COIB, said if the Rover pickup truck had any laces attached it could have crossed the line.
“It appears to me to be a misuse of city resources against non-city employees,” Briffault said.
However, since Adams was already heading to the event, the additional costs seemed minimal, so ostensibly no legal lines were crossed.
“I can't say he clearly violated city regulations,” he said, adding, “Maybe this is a pattern of ethical sloppiness.”
One Democratic official was more blunt, saying that the elevator charge was an example of “blatant grievance” and that Adams “desperately tried to sneak out of town to cozy up to President Trump and spend taxpayer money on it.” “He used it to benefit his friends and political allies.” sorry. ”
Adams' press secretary, Kayla Malemak, told the newspaper that the mayor is allowed to have guests ride with him on details and that the ride does not violate any rules.
Malemak added that Rover was already on her way to the event and the mayor decided to pick her up.
This is not the first time a case involving Mr. Lorber has raised eyebrows among ethics experts.
Angel's Helpers, a nonprofit that provides access to arts and culture to the city's youth, came under intense scrutiny after it auctioned off a dinner with Adams during a summer fundraiser in the Hamptons. It later withdrew the award after the Post asked about it.
After it was first revealed that Adams had accepted a last-minute invitation to a large political rally, city officials announced that the mayor would attend Trump's inauguration alone with security personnel. I was doing it.
But photos seen by the Post show NYPD Chief of Police John Chell and Deputy Chief of Operations Kaz Daughtry standing in plain clothes at the back of the overflow room, while Adams is seen with MMA fighter Conor McGregor and others. He was demoted along with social media. Personalities Jake and Logan Paul.
City officials defended the presence of top police officials, saying they were already in Washington, D.C., at the request of local law enforcement and were assisting with security.
