FBI hands Trump towers contractor no-bid surveillance deal

Several properties bearing President Donald Trump’s name are getting new equipment, but the installations are more than routine upgrades. According to previously unreported federal contracting documents, the FBI’s Video Surveillance Unit is installing antennas on the rooftops of Trump Plaza in New Rochelle, New York and Trump World Tower in New York City, The Washington Sun reports. The FBI awarded NAMSI LLC a government contract without opening the job to competitive bidding. NAMSI is a company that manages the rooftops of several buildings bearing the Trump name.

In the federal contracting documents, the FBI classified the arrangement as “Leasing of Building Space to the Federal Government by Owners” and identified the Trump-branded buildings as “optimal antenna locations for the ACRx system in the New York City region.” The antennas are designed to receive video-surveillance signals. “If the FBI is unable to use NAMSI for the sites referenced above, the required technology cannot be installed on locations that have already been vetted and approved,” the documents read. The White House, FBI, NAMSI and Trump Organization did not respond to the outlet’s requests for comment on the surveillance installations.

The Trump Organization no longer manages Trump Plaza, but continues to manage Trump World Tower. Whether Trump’s business organization will profit from the use of the Trump World Tower’s roof by the FBI is unknown. A previous contract awarded to NAMSI indicates that the FBI has maintained an ACRx antenna on the roof of Trump World Tower since at least 2022.

Trump’s relationship with the FBI became contentious between his first and second terms. In August 2022, the FBI executed a search at his Mar-a-Lago resort and seized government documents he had taken after leaving office, which led to criminal charges against Trump, but the case was dismissed in 2024. In his second term, the Justice Department dropped the prosecution. Since returning to office, Trump’s administration has also targeted former FBI employees involved in the Mar-a-Lago investigation.

The Drug Enforcement Administration has also contracted with NAMSI to use Trump World Tower for antennas and related equipment since at least 2020.

The need for new antennas dates back to 2015, when the Federal Communications Commission auctioned off airwaves for $44.9 billion. The sale included radio frequencies used by the Justice Department to transmit video-surveillance signals, forcing the agency to adjust its equipment and communications systems.