AG James’ chief of staff wasn’t her first staffer ousted over sexual harassment claims

Another man who worked for state Attorney General Letitia James was quietly bounced for allegedly harassing women in the office, The Post has learned. 

Enny Pichardo, a former deputy in the AG’s press office, was forced to resign under the threat of termination in 2019 after being found to have inappropriately touched female staffers and commented on their bodies in the Manhattan office, sources familiar with his case said.

“He was a problem,” said a source familiar with the probe that led to Pichardo’s termination.

Pichardo was seen inappropriately touching women on the face “and commenting on women’s legs and buttocks,” the source said.

A second source familiar the case also said Pichardo was accused of touching multiple female employees while working in the office.

“He would talk about sex out loud in the office,” the source said.

The sources said Pichardo was warned about his behavior, but continued to act inappropriately until he was forced out. 

Pichardo also violated a directive not to talk to suspected accusers when the AG’s office conducted a sexual harassment probe of his actions and meddled instead, the sources said.

“It was totally inappropriate behavior,” a source said.

The attorney general’s office confirmed that Pichardo resigned “in lieu of termination.”

“An EEO [Equal Employment Opportunity] investigation was launched into Mr. Pichardo following allegations of misconduct. Legally, we cannot comment on the specifics of those allegations,” James’ office said in a statement.

The statement cited federal and state EEO confidential laws that barred it from discussing the details of Picardo’s case.

But the statement did say, “Mr. Pichardo failed to follow direct orders related to the investigation. As a result of those failures, in lieu of termination, he resigned and was removed from the office immediately.”

“Mr. Pichardo was employed by OAG for less than six months, from June 2019 to November 2019. … Once Mr. Pichardo was separated from the office, OAG had no further involvement in his future employment.”

Pichardo, in a Post interview Monday night, emphasized that he wasn’t fired.

“I resigned. I was the one who resigned,” he said.

“I never touched a f–king woman. F–k the New York Post.”

The revelation comes after AG James was accused of hiding a sexual harassment probe involving longtime chief of staff  Ibrahim Khan during the final weeks of her re-election campaign.

After the election it was revealed that Khan announced his resignation of Nov. 22 — effective Dec. 31 — before a independent probe by a private law firm requested by James substantiated harassment complaints made against the chief of staff involving former staffers.

After leaving the AG’s office, Pichardo worked briefly for Rep. Jamaal Bowman.

Bowman’s office confirmed Pichardo was employed with the congressman from Jan. 1 to Jan. 28 of this year. His office declined further comment.

Pichardo, on his LinkedIn page, said he now works as an “independent journalist” with EnNYConMás, which appears on YouTube and other social media platforms.

James’ commissioned the independent probe that concluded that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo had engaged in sexual misconduct against numerous women, forcing his resignation. Cuomo insisted he did nothing wrong despite his departure under the threat of impeachment that also focused other scandals involving his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak and $5 million pandemic book deal, and has accused James of ethical violations.

The attorney general has come under withering criticism and scrutiny given the sexual harassment bombshell involving Khan, her former chief of staff, which was kept quiet during the final weeks of the election campaign.

A former aide who accused Khan of harassment blasted AG James’ office for mishandling the public explanation of the case.

“My issue has never been with Attorney General Letitia James or how the investigation was handled. My allegations were quickly addressed, and an independent investigation substantiated my claims,” Sophia Quintanar said in a statement to The Post.

“I took issue with the unclear nature of the communications that followed the conclusion of the investigation.”

Quintanar told The Times last week, ““I find it just appalling to see how the office handled this publicly.”

But James defended her handling of the Khan case as by the book, and emphasized the difference with the Cuomo harassment probe.

She said she she received a public referral from Cuomo to investigate the accusations against the ex-governor and under state law the results of that investigation were to made public.