Ex-cop chief and bro seen as Eric aides

Democratic mayoral nominee Eric Adams is taking advice from a former NYPD chief who once said he’d plead the Fifth Amendment in a corruption trial — and whose brother is now a top contender to become Adams’ schools chancellor if he’s elected.

Former NYPD Chief of Department Philip Banks (photo) is one of several former cops advising Adams when it comes to public safety, three sources confirmed.

And Banks’ brother, David Banks, the president of the Eagle Academy Foundation, is in the mix with Adams as well, but in a slightly different respect.

He’s being eyed as someone who could helm the city’s Department of Education in an Adams’ administration, according to two sources familiar with Adams’ expected transition.

According to one of those sources, Banks is a virtual shoo-in for the job. “I would be shocked if there were other candidates who came out ahead of him,” the source said. “They go way, way back.”

Adams, the current Brooklyn borough president and himself a former NYPD captain, has known both Philip and David Banks for years, sources said.

Philip Banks retired from the NYPD in 2014 after his name was floated as a possible police commissioner. After retiring though, he came under scrutiny for his ties with two businessmen, Jonah Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg, who were at the center of a corruption trial.

Banks was never charged for a crime and for years has denied any wrongdoing. When contacted by the Daily News on Thursday, he declined to comment.

His brother David is the founding principal of the Eagle Academy for Young Men, a network of six schools in the city. According to Politico, Adams has been leaning on David Banks for advice as well.

Adams is the Brooklyn borough president and is facing Republican Curtis Sliwa in the November general election,.

When asked about Philip Banks’ role as an adviser, Adams’ campaign spokesman Evan Thies said he “is one of a number of policing experts who have offered their institutional knowledge of the department, including former Commissioner [William] Bratton and other former chiefs of department.”

Adams said, “I’m relying on everyone with experience in law enforcement.”