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A former aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo was accused Wednesday of allegedly trying to investigate the woman who sparked the sexual harassment scandal that’s threatening his political career.

In a series of tweets, Lindsey Boylan claimed that Abbey Collins — a former Cuomo spokeswoman who’s now chief communications officer for the MTA — “was calling around asking our former colleagues about me once I came forward.”

“Is that allowed? And why did you care so much, Abbey?” Boylan wrote.

Boylan added, “Maybe the org chart changed since I left state service? Any particular reason why you were calling other former female colleagues @abbey_e_collins ? I’m trying to piece it all together. Hopefully some folks can help me.”


  Lindsey Boylan, a former Cuomo aide who’s now a Democratic candidate for Manhattan borough president. Rob Latour/Shutterstock Lindsey Boylan, a former Cuomo aide who’s now a Democratic candidate for Manhattan borough president. Rob Latour/Shutterstock

Boylan’s tweet followed claims by another Cuomo accuser, Ana Liss, that the governor’s spokesman phoned her on her honeymoon, shortly after Boylan tweeted her initial accusations against Cuomo in December.


  Lindsey Boylan attends The 9th Annual Elly Awards Hosted By The Women’s Forum Of New York on June 17, 2019. Mike Coppola/Getty Images Lindsey Boylan attends The 9th Annual Elly Awards Hosted By The Women’s Forum Of New York on June 17, 2019. Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Spokesman Rich Azzopardi, who’s also a senior Cuomo adviser, asked Liss whether Boylan had “reached out” to her or if they’d spoken to each other, Liss told Rochester TV station WROC on Monday.

“And I said, ‘No,’ and then we hung up, and I remember thinking, ‘How many other people is he calling? Why is he calling us?’” Liss added.

Boylan, 36, and Liss, 35, are both former Cuomo aides and are among five women who have publicly accused the 63-year-old governor of sexual harassment or other inappropriate behavior.  

In one of her Wednesday tweets, Boylan — who’s now a Democratic candidate for Manhattan borough president — questioned whether Collins was acting at the request of current and Cuomo administration officials, including Linda Lacewell, the state’s superintendent of financial services, and budget director Robert Mujica.

In a written response to Boylan’s tweets, Collins said, “I’m not going to comment on inaccurate Twitter gossip.”

Collins declined to comment further.

In a statement issued Tuesday night, Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi acknowledged that the governor’s office “proactively reached out to some former colleagues” after Boylan, her lawyers and reporters began contacting former staffers in the wake of her initial allegations against Cuomo in December.

In addition to the five women who have gone public with their allegations, a sixth — who is a current Cuomo staffer — has also said that he touched her without consent after she was summoned to the Executive Mansion on official business late last year, according to the Albany Times Union.

An earlier version of that report initially described the unidentified woman as having alleged that Cuomo touched her inappropriately.

On Monday, Attorney General Letitia James announced that former acting Manhattan US Attorney Joon Kim and veteran employment lawyer Anne Clark would lead an independent investigation into the allegations against Cuomo.

Cuomo has repeatedly denied sexually harassing or touching anyone inappropriately but admitted that he may have offended some women by kissing them in what he called “my usual and customary way of greeting” people.

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