NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey resigned abruptly Friday night amid bombshell allegations from an NYPD lieutenant who accused him of predatory sexual harassment and forcing her to perform “unwanted sexual favors” in return for overtime pay, the Daily News has learned.
Quathisha Epps claims Maddrey repeatedly demanded sex from her “in exchange for overtime opportunities in the workplace,” according to a complaint filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
When Epps began to reject Maddrey’s advances, the chief retaliated by adding her name to a list of the department’s top overtime earners — a list that top NYPD executives consistently edit to hide friends and colleagues making massive amounts of overtime with little oversight, the complaint alleges.
Epps filed for retirement Monday after The News reported that she earned more than $400,000 in fiscal 2024, including $204,000 in overtime for 1,626 hours in the year. She was then suspended Wednesday, though police sources said the suspension wasn’t transmitted throughout the department as is normal.
She has retained attorney Eric Sanders, a former cop who specializes in representing police officers in claims against the city, and intends to sue.
The NYPD confirmed Maddrey’s departure Saturday morning.
“Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch accepted the resignation of Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey Friday night, effective immediately,” an NYPD spokesman said. “The NYPD takes all allegations of sexual misconduct seriously and will thoroughly investigate this matter.”
NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell has been named interim chief of department in Maddrey’s absence. Philip Rivera, the department’s chief of transportation, will assume the role of interim chief of patrol, NYPD officials said, declining any further comment.
“We are deeply disturbed by these allegations, and the NYPD is investigating this matter,” Kayla Mamelak, a spokeswoman for Mayor Eric Adams, said in a statement to The News. “Mayor Adams is working in close coordination with Police Commissioner Tisch as the NYPD conducts a separate departmentwide review to ensure no high-ranking officers are using their power inappropriately. We will refrain from commenting further to avoid jeopardizing either investigation.”
On Saturday, just hours after Maddrey’s departure, the department transferred a lieutenant, sergeant and 16 detectives from bureaus at Police Headquarters, according to transfer orders shared with The News. Three of the detectives were from Maddrey’s office, but it wasn’t immediately clear if the move had anything to do with Epps’ allegations.
NYPD Internal Affairs Chief Miguel Iglesias also announced he was leaving the department, according to multiple police sources. The NYPD did not immediately confirm the announcement.
Maddrey began forcing Epps, a cancer survivor, “into performing unwanted sexual favors” beginning in June 2023, according to the complaint. The chief was also having sex with two other female officers, according to the complaint. The sexual encounters usually occurred in his office at Police Headquarters, the complaint says.
When Epps “finally developed the courage to reject Chief Maddrey’s advances, he retaliated against her by orchestrating and intentionally manipulating a monthly overtime report to falsely portray her as an abuser of overtime,” the complaint reads.
Epps claims that the overtime list was constantly edited to “hide the true number of overtime abusers throughout former Police Commissioner Edward Caban’s administration and the current administration,” the complaint reads, adding that top overtime earners who have been removed from the list included Maddrey, Chell and NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry.
Emails to the NYPD and City Hall on the alleged manipulation of the overtime list were not immediately returned Saturday.
Epps’ salary made her one of the highest-earning cops in the NYPD. Critics inside and outside the NYPD have questioned how she could have worked that much overtime, especially since Epps’ role for Maddrey was administrative in nature.
Police sources said the review is broader than Epps’ earnings alone. It may include other misconduct within Maddrey’s office.
The Justice Department and the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office are looking into Epps’ overtime payments and allegations against Maddrey, NBC New York reported Saturday, citing sources.
While granting Epps overtime, Maddrey also “demanded monetary compensation in return” and at one point “required her to fund a trip to Miami for him and his wife,” the complaint reads.
Finally, Epps told Maddrey last Monday that she intended to retire, the complaint reads. Maddrey said he would speak to Tisch on her behalf, but first demanded that Epps “kiss it,” meaning perform oral sex on him, the claim alleges.
“Feeling she had no choice, [she] complied under coercion,” the complaint read.
Sanders said Epps has suffered “profound harm at the hands of individuals who exploited their positions of power for personal gain.”
“The retaliation she faced for standing up to this abuse underscores the need for immediate reforms to address systemic failures within the NYPD,” Sanders said. “No one — especially those who dedicate their lives to serving and protecting the public — should ever be subjected to such exploitation and intimidation.”
Maddrey’s attorney Lambros Lambrou denied the allegations Saturday.
“What a convenient time to accuse somebody of misconduct now that she’s been suspended by the NYPD and accused of stealing time,” Lambrou said. “She’s obviously drowning and in the deep end of the pool without a lifesaver. She wants to take down as many people as she can. This is completely meritless, and we deny every aspect of it.”
Maddrey, often hailed as a community-friendly NYPD leader, has been under a great deal of scrutiny in the past, including for a confrontation with a police officer named Tabatha Foster who claims she was involved with him, and acting to quash the arrest of a friend of his who threatened three teens with a gun.
Sanders represented Foster in an initial lawsuit against Maddrey before she retained another lawyer.
Meanwhile, community activist Dana Rachlin sued Maddrey and other top brass claiming they orchestrated a campaign to ruin her career for her criticism of police tactics in Brooklyn.
NYPD Chief Miltiadis Marmara also sued Maddrey last summer, alleging Maddrey orchestrated a campaign to sideline his career after he defended a female sergeant against sexual harassment by former senior mayoral adviser Timothy Pearson.
“Maddrey has long abused his position within the department to satisfy his own sexual desires and retaliate against women who refuse to acquiesce to his or his associates’ advances,” said John Scola, who represents Marmara. “We hope that with Maddrey’s resignation and the appointment of a new police commissioner, the NYPD can finally begin to purge the toxic culture of sexual harassment within its ranks.”
Last Wednesday, NYPD Capt. Gabrielle Walls filed an amended complaint in a lawsuit against the city, alleging that Maddrey sexually harassed her over a seven-year period between 2015 and 2022.
Walls claims Maddrey repeatedly hit on her at his lavish Christmas parties. At one event, Maddrey allegedly tried to drunkenly kiss Walls, and told her he “was going to mold her” and asked her to “let him know when you get close to being a captain so I can help you.”
At another party, Maddrey told Walls, “I want you so badly. You smell so good. … You turn me on so much,” the lawsuit alleges.
Walls initially sued Chief Scott Henderson, alleging he repeatedly blocked her from getting a precinct command after she rejected his romantic overtures. Walls’ lawyer Scola then added Maddrey and former Commissioner Caban as defendants.
When reached about Maddrey’s resignation Saturday, Walls said she finally felt “vindicated” and “believed,” and hopes that Tisch, the department’s second woman commissioner, cleans house and “gets rid” of predatory police chiefs in the department.
“I have chills,” Walls told The News. “There are so many females who are afraid to come forward. I pray they keep coming. We have to make this change. We can’t let this continue to happen.”
Despite the controversies, Maddrey has been able to remain a favored son within the top echelons of the NYPD, and has been defended by Adams and Caban.
Maddrey recently became a lawyer, signaling that he was close to retirement after a 33-year career.
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