Kamillah Hanks Busted On Her Biggest Political Lie Yet: “We Work With Law Enforcement”
By Dick LaFontaine and M. Thomas Nast, with Richard Luthmann and Michael Volpe
Kamillah Hanks told one of Staten Island’s boldest political lies, and she’s used the line more than once: “It’s all being investigated as we work with law enforcement.”
Bullshit.
Kamillah Hanks doesn’t work with law enforcement. Hanks hates cops. She proved it when she sponsored the “How Many Stops Act,” which law enforcement unions and advocates say shackle NYPD officers, putting them at risk.
Journalists Michael Volpe and Richard Luthmann (whose reporting has drawn Hanks’ ire) discussed the NYC Council’s most prolific “FIBBER” on a recent episode of The Unknown Podcast.
Now, Hanks faces scandal after scandal while getting help from supposed pro-cop allies—District Attorney Michael McMahon and State Senator Jessica Scarcella-Spanton.
Hanks ‘Ropes In’ Staten Island DA Mike McMahon On Cops Conflict
Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon talks tough on crime but plays dirty politics behind the scenes. McMahon is knee-deep in the Kamillah Hanks scandal. He sends his political “lieutenants” to collect petitions for the council member directly responsible for the How Many Stops Act and tied to accused Drug Lord Ettore Mazzei, who his office is prosecuting.
Operatives are collecting signatures to get Hanks on the June 24 Democratic Primary ballot after she lost Staten Island Democratic County Committee support.
“McMahon claims to back cops but works overtime for Kamillah. It’s a slap in the face,” said a law enforcement source.
Mazzei sits in Rikers on narcotics charges—charges brought by McMahon’s own office. Yet McMahon refuses to investigate Hanks’ nonprofit, Historic Tappen Park Community Partnership, where Mazzei sat on the board.
“How can McMahon prosecute Mazzei while helping Hanks, who took Mazzei’s drug money?” one retired NYPD officer asked. “It’s a clear conflict.”
Sources say McMahon’s priority is protecting his political machine, not fighting crime.
“If this was any regular citizen, they’d be under investigation already,” said a veteran cop. “McMahon’s compromised, and everyone knows it.”
Dirty Money and Drug Lord Ties
Public IRS records show Hanks earned $82,375 a year running Historic Tappen Park Community Partnership Inc., a nonprofit that received millions in NYC grant money.
Sitting on that nonprofit’s board? None other than accused Drug Lord Ettore Mazzei.
Mazzei was indicted in 2024 for running a multimillion-dollar cocaine and fentanyl empire in Stapleton. He’s now rotting in Rikers Island awaiting trial.
“Ettore thought nobody could touch him,” a law enforcement source said. “He flaunted his connection to Kamillah Hanks.”
Mazzei even donated to Hanks’ campaign. Hanks never returned the cash.
“It’s drug money—plain and simple,” said one retired NYPD officer. “She should’ve returned it the second Mazzei got busted.”
DA McMahon never investigated the nonprofit. There’s no indication anyone looked into whether Mazzei laundered drug money through Tappen Park.
“She claims she’s working with law enforcement? Bullshit,” a cop fumed. “No one is investigating anything—because they’re all covering for her.”
Cop-Hating NYC Council Member EXPOSED: True2Life, Cop Killer Sympathizers, and Hanks’ War on Cops
It gets worse.
Kamillah Hanks’ connection to True2Life is one of the most damning parts of her record. Hanks funneled $105,000 in taxpayer money to the group, which has a history of supporting gang members and advocating for the parole of violent criminals—including Shatiek Johnson, the convicted murderer of hero NYPD Officer Gerard Carter.
True2Life’s advocacy for Johnson infuriated Staten Island’s law enforcement community and NYPD families.
“Kamillah Hanks chose a gang-banger group over cops. She gave them our tax dollars while turning her back on Officer Carter’s family,” a retired detective said.
Carter’s widow, Jozette Carter-Williams, who is now challenging Hanks, put it best: “You don’t fund groups that fight for cop killers and call yourself pro-community.”
At Johnson’s parole hearing, Carter’s widow, Jozette Carter-Williams, destroyed her ex-husband’s murderer: “One could be an accident. Two self-defense. But three bodies? You’re a serial killer.”
Sources say Johnson has also perpetrated numerous prison assaults (including a sexual assault) and other incidents. The NYS Department of Corrections will not release the records for full public transparency, citing administrative concerns.
“The public has a right to know if the cop killer up for parole has spent his decades in prison trying to rape everything that moves when he’s in general population,” a retired law enforcement source said. “If the public saw what was in most of these jackets, some parole board members might be brought up on charges.”
Carter-Williams and community activist Abou Diakhate are now Hanks’ top challengers.
Carter-Williams has the full backing of the NYPD unions and is the only candidate endorsed by law enforcement.
“She’s the widow of a hero cop. Meanwhile, Kamillah’s bankrolling groups that fight for cop killers, gang-bangers, and the dredges of the earth,” said a police union source. “There’s your choice.”
Cop-Hating NYC Council Member EXPOSED: Cumbo, Bobby Digi, and the Cultural Grift
Henry “Bobby Digi” Olisa, the longtime Staten Island political hanger-on and baby daddy to NYC Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo, is another shady figure in Kamillah Hanks’ orbit.
Olisa runs the Canvas Institute, a nonprofit notorious for repeated allegations of financial mismanagement. Despite his questionable record, Hanks funneled $105,000 in taxpayer funding to Canvas through her City Council office.
“I was delighted to join Bobby Digi and the CANVAS Institute family at the opening of their new hub. I admire the impactful work they do with young people in our community. Equally exciting was announcing the allocation of $105,000 in funding from the NYC Council to support their efforts in providing career readiness and mentorship,” said Hanks in a recent mailing from her office.
Insiders say it was political payback to Cumbo and a favor to Olisa, who previously ran another sketchy nonprofit, Island Voice, that also never filed proper taxes.
The IRS’s website says Island Voice, Inc.’s charitable status was revoked in May 2010 because the organization failed to file three consecutive 990 charitable tax returns.
If Island Voice, Inc. was formed in 2006, missed three tax returns in 2007, 2008, and 2009, and had its status revoked in 2010, Digi-Olisa NEVER filed a tax return for that not-for-profit entity.
That’s not a great track record. Island Voice, Inc. still holds itself out as a not-for-profit, but it hasn’t been once since May 2010, 15 years ago.
“Bobby Digi is a walking scandal,” one Staten Island Democratic County Committee Member said. “No filings, no oversight—but the cash keeps flowing.”
With Hanks, Olisa, and Cumbo all connected, critics say this is just another example of cronyism and taxpayer dollars being used to enrich friends, family, and political allies.
Another prominent Staten Island Democrat agreed.
“It’s all part of the Kamillah corruption web,” the insider said. “She moves money to her friends and family. The [Staten Island] Advance doesn’t report it, and no one in power cares.”
Michele Sileo: Conflict at the Board of Elections
Adding insult to injury, Hanks appointed her crony Michele Sileo to the NYC Board of Elections.
Sileo’s appointment sparked outrage among Staten Island Democratic County Committee members, who accuse her of being Kamillah Hanks’ political puppet.
“She’s such a basic bitch,” said one Staten Island community member. “Debi Rose is REAL. Always has been.”
Hanks vetoed the County Committee’s choice—respected former Councilwoman Debi Rose—for the BOE seat and forced through Sileo instead.
Sileo’s deep personal and professional ties to Hanks now raise serious conflict-of-interest concerns. As a sitting BOE Commissioner, Sileo is expected to rule on ballot access challenges in Hanks’ hotly contested re-election race.
Yet Sileo also serves on the board of Historic Tappen Park Community Partnership Inc.—the same nonprofit founded by Hanks and tainted by accused drug kingpin Ettore Mazzei.
Critics argue Sileo’s position is compromised, and she cannot fairly adjudicate Hanks’ ballot issues while entangled in Hanks’ political and financial scandals.
“It’s a total conflict,” one Democratic insider said. “How can Sileo rule objectively when her political career was made by Kamillah?”
Also, as an attorney, Sileo’s conflicts may raise professional ethics issues.
Cop-Hating NYC Council Member EXPOSED: The Final Countdown
The June 24 Democratic primary looms—and Hanks is in deep trouble.
“She’s finished,” a PBA insider said. “Every cop on Staten Island wants her gone. And they’ll make sure it happens.”
Jozette Carter-Williams is surging in the polls. Her platform? Pro-cop, pro-community, anti-corruption.
Abod Diakhate is running for change. He’s not far behind.
“This is it,” one strategist said. “Voters have a choice—Kamillah Hanks, tied to drugs, lies, and cop killers, or a clean break.”
Hanks hasn’t returned previous requests for comment. Neither did McMahon, Spanton, or Sileo.
“Kamillah Hanks lied. She’s not working with law enforcement. She’s working against them,” one retired NYPD said. “And on Primary Day, we’re coming for her in full force.”
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