California State Senator Arrested on Charges of Bribery and Corruption

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State Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, addresses the Senate at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Friday, Sept. 2, 2011.

Image: Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press

By Alex Magdaleno2014-03-26 22:02:12 UTC

California State Sen. Leland Yee has been indicted on charges of public corruption as a part of multiple arrests made by the FBI in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento, Calif. on Wednesday morning, according to multiple sources.

FBI agents raided Yee's office in the California State Capitol, taking computers and other documents, while California Highway Patrol officers and the Sergeant at Arms were stationed outside of his office.

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The FBI also raided a building in San Francisco's Chinatown called Ghee Kung Tong Supreme Lodge, a masonic organization linked to the arrest of Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow, a notorious former San Francisco gangster indicted on charges of racketeering and drug crimes in 1992, San Jose Mercury News reported. Chow was convicted of gun charges and sentenced to 25 years in prison, but in 2003, he was released after testifying against Peter Chong, an alleged high-ranking leader of a Chinatown gang. Chow's cooperation with law enforcement reduced his sentence to 11 years.

The early-morning arrests involved hundreds of federal agents and local cops, and were part of an ongoing FBI investigation that dates back to a fatal shooting from five years ago, according to sources that spoke with the San Francisco Chronicle . In addition to Yee's office, the FBI searched a building on the 1700 block of Hyde Street and a home on the 600 block of 42nd Avenue in San Mateo.

FBI spokesman Peter Lee confirmed to the Chronicle that Yee and Chow had been arrested. Both are scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon where they will appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nathaniel Cousins.

Keith Jackson, a San Francisco political consultant and former member of the San Francisco Board of Education, was also taken into custody.

Yee is currently running as a candidate for California Secretary of State, and represents San Francisco and part of San Mateo County. He was the first Chinese-American elected to the California State Senate in 2006. Prior to that, Yee served in the California State Assembly from 2002 to 2006, where he was also the first Asian-American to be named Speaker pro tempore — making him the second-most powerful Democrat in the chamber.

Yee's indictment makes him the third Democratic California state legislator this year to be linked to corruption charges. Last month, California State Sen. Ron Calderon of Montebello was accused of accepting $100,000 in return for pushing legislation, and indicted with charges of "mail fraud, wire fraud, honest services fraud, bribery, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering and aiding in the filing of false tax returns."

In January, Sen. Roderick Wright was convicted of eight felony counts of perjury and voter fraud when he had lied about his legal residence to run in a district outside of his actual residence.

We will continue to update this story as it develops.

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Topics: california, corruption, democratic, democrats, FBI, government corruption, senator, state, U.S., US & World