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| Government Corruption |
| Damaging scandal that's engulfed progressive Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao deepens |
| 2024-07-27 |
| [Daily Mail, where America gets its news] … as new detail emerges about FBI raid on her home. Feds who raided Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao's home last month left with a phone belonging to her and her partner Andre Jones, it's been revealed. The fact was first reported by The San Francisco Chronicle, after it was already revealed that agents left with the mayor's cellphone and her personal computer. Within five days, a federal grand jury issued a subpoena to the Bay Area city that demanded all 'documents and communications related to Andre Jones' be turned over. They also requested all 'calendar entries or records' of meetings that included either one of the two since June 2022 - five months before Thao, 39, was even elected. More than a month later, feds have yet to say why they are interested in the pair, but the seizure of Jones' cellphone raise questions about the potential involvement of a man who played a small but significant role in the mayor's political career. The spotlight on Jones had already widened in recent weeks, as Thao's former chief of staff, Renia Webb, publicly accused him of corruption. Not offering any other detail, the ex-staffer said she had spoken to the FBI as part of their investigation as the subpoenas hinting at his involvement were sent. A source with knowledge of the investigation, meanwhile, confided to the Chronicle Friday that investigators took Jones' phone. A second insider insisted Jones - who lives at the home with Thao - stopped using his phone shortly after the raids June 20. He instead switched to a new number, they said - asking to remain anonymous as feds' probe into the political power couple continues. Jones reportedly would not comment when approached by the Chronicle - as was the case with his attorney. Despite working in politics for decades - once as Oakland city Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan's chief of staff - Jones's life and political career are surprisingly shrouded in mystery, with little information available about him publicly. Asked who is representing Jones, Thao's personal attorney, Jeff Tsai, deferred to attorney Walter Riley, who has not spoken on his client to the press. Thao, meanwhile, declined to comment to the Chronicle as they reported on the records requests and the one for Jones's phone, as the mayor faces a recall attempt less than two years after taking office. She has questioned the timing and legitimacy of the raids conducted by the FBI and US Postal Service as a result, as her attorney continues to exude confidence that she is not the target of their investigation. Thao has also said Jones is not involved in her administration nor on the city payroll. 'He's hardly even been in my office,' she told KPIX this month. A little more than a month ago, Webb, who served as Thao's chief of staff for 18 months, aired her belief that feds were looking into the longtime political staffer who fathered a now-11-year-old daughter with the Oakland mayor. Webb - credited with running much of Thao's office and her campaign - accused Jones of classic pay-to-play corruption, including trying to lobby for jobs for Thao's donors and allies. She said Jones' behavior bordered on ridiculous, with a stunt where he tried to involve his ex-wife in Thao's swearing in ceremony as mayor being the last straw before she quit. That incident is said to have left Thao in tears, as she billed herself as a success story after surviving a bout of homelessness in the Bay Area as a single mom with her now-17-year-old son. Her parents immigrated to the US from Laos during the Hmong genocide in the 80s, settling in Stockton as vegetable farmers. It was only after this that Thao was born. She left home 17 years later after growing up with nine brothers and sisters. In her 20s, she found herself in an abusive relationship, forcing her to flee to the streets while six months pregnant with her son. For several years, she raised him while staying at a friend's home. Later, Thao met Jones while serving as an intern under Kaplan who was elected to the City Council in 2008, and had hired Jones as chief of staff for her office. Jones would leave this post in 2016, before being appointed a year later as assistant chief of external and intergovernmental affairs at the California Bureau of Cannabis Control. Thao, meanwhile, took his place as chief of staff, before winning a council seat in 2018. Jones went on to leave his state job in 2021, the same year he ran for a seat on the Democratic Party’s coordinating committee in District 18, which includes Oakland and Alameda, as part of the Progressive & Labor Unity Slate. He won - though the role is unpaid. He made contributions to Thao in 2018 and Kaplan in 2020. It’s unclear what Jones has done professionally since. Earlier this month, he grabbed a reporter’s business card from the front door before shutting it behind him, the Chronicle reported - after feds also stormed multiple properties belonging members of a politically connected family who run the city’s contracted recycling company. Still, the nature of the investigation remains unknown, as the recall effort continues. Back in March, the In-N-Out Burger in Oakland became the chain's first-ever location to close because of rampant crime in the area, as a Subway and a Denny's did as well. The recall comes as residents continue to complain over rising rates of crime and homelessness - phenomena the mayor had promised to address. Jones, meanwhile, has also tried his hand at acting, with three credits for low-budget movies released in 2003 and 2004. Related: Sheng Thao 07/06/2024 Nightmarish moment 100 robbers ransack gas station in hellhole California city Sheng Thao 06/25/2024 Embattled Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao claims FBI wouldn't have raided her home if she was rich Sheng Thao 06/21/2024 REPORT: FBI Raids Democratic Oakland Mayor's Home |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #2 I notice that a lot of the federal law agencies seem to very interested in going back to 'normal' law enforcement these days. Yes indeed! The new sheriff if arriving soon. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2024-07-27 16:05 |
| #1 So what we got here is 'Chinatown' meets Black Lives Matter, in Cali. Of course they're crooks. I notice that a lot of the federal law agencies seem to very interested in going back to 'normal' law enforcement these days. |
| Posted by: ed in texas 2024-07-27 16:02 |