attorneys for david duong said, "mr. duong denies wrongdoing and will vigorously defend these allegations in court. he looks forward to prevailing in this case." and attorneys for andy duong said he is, "innocent of the charges. we have kept quiet despite the media frenzy in the past months in the hope that the government would correctly come to see through objective investigation that the allegations are baseless." this all comes two months after voters recalled thao from office. the charges did not come as a big surprise for her political opponents and a former thao staffer who became a whistleblower. da lin has that part of the story on the pay-to-play allegations since last year's fbi raids. he's live outside the oakland federal building with more reaction to today's indictment. >> reporter: many of thao's opponents say they aren't surprised and they feel vindicated. they've been sounding the alarm for a while now, but one of the first to speak up is thao's former chief of staff, renia webb. renia webb risked her car

that was the preference of the duong family. they would essentially give her a suggestion of someone that they want in a position of power, and she would is accused of promising to give that option and to make that happen. so it's not just the bribery, it's not just the accepting of money. it's also a number of pay to play and promises made and promises potentially carried out by the former mayor. in her time at city hall. >> james, thank you. if you want to hang tight for a second, i just want to read a statement we just got from the attorneys for the duong family. i'm going to read it to you because it's coming. fresh air. our client, it says, quote, our client and friend andy duong is innocent of the charges. we have kept quiet despite the media frenzy of the past months, in the hope that the government would correctly come to see through objective investigation that the allegations are baseless and being fanned by nothing more than gossip and supposition stitched together by the fabrications and delusions of those who lack a

and attorneys for andy duong said he is, "innocent of the charges. we have kept quiet in the hope the government would correctly come to see through investigation that the allegations are baseless," and today's federal indictment is sending shock waves through the city of oakland as sara donchey follows some of the reaction coming in. >> after this big announcement today, some of sheng thao's political opponents were very quick to condemn the former mayor, perhaps totally unsurprising news there. former oakland city councilman loren taylor lost to thao in the 2022 mayoral race. he was one of the targets of all of those negative political mailers allegedly sent to try and boost thao's campaign. he said today," it's clear the alleged corruption had an impact on the outcome of the election." >> it's about oakland voters, their choice, their ability to have real representation being stolen and we have to restore the system, restore faith and trust in the system and we have to start working for oaklanders. >> and also organizers of the effort to recall sh

the indictment alleges that the owners, david duong and his son andy duong, funded a $75,000 negative campaign targeting thao's opponents during her run for mayor. the feds say the father/son duo put andre jones on the payroll for a job where you never show up or do any work to mask the bribery payment. this afternoon all four of them faced charges, including bribery, conspiracy, and mail fraud. we saw jones as he was leaving the federal building this morning. here's a look at andy duong at the federal courthouse today. he's also accused of making false statements to government agents. >> examples of promises allegedly made by thao include her agreement to purchase housing units from a company owned by the duong family, her agreement to insure the extension of a contract for recycling services that the city of oakland had with one of david and andy duong's companies, and her agreement to use influence to help appoint a high level city official to benefit the duongs' business interests. >> just before noon thao and her attorney walked out of the oakland courthouse and addressed reporte

so what exactly are tao jones and the duong's accused of? investigative reporter candice nguyen joins us now to break down the alleged bribery scheme laid out by prosecutors today. and, candice, we know they're prominent businessmen, but who are these dongs? yeah, they are a father son duo working with a waste company that you've probably seen in oakland and in the south bay. they, tao and jes, are denying these allegations, as prosecutors allege a bribery scheme that helped tao become mayor and pay some of her and her partner's personal bills. this federal indictment charges former oakland mayor sheng thao of a corrupt relationship with her partner, andre jones, and two additional defendants, david and andy duong. david duong is the president ceo of kao waste solutions. he's also co-owner of a housing company. his son, andy also works at cal waste and co-owns the same housing company. leading up to oakland's 2022 mayoral election. federal prosecutors say sheng thao promised if she was elected, the city of oakland would buy housing units fro

level city official to benefit the duong's business interests. in exchange, the duong's allegedly paid $75,000 for campaign mailers attacking tao's opponents in her 2022 bid for mayor and $95,000 in direct payments disguised for a no show job. all four pled not guilty in federal court in oakland on friday. tao alone faces six counts related to bribery, conspiracy and mail and wire fraud. she faces a maximum of 95 years in prison and upwards of $1.5 million in fines. but tao's lawyer, who spoke after the hearing, claims the evidence in the u.s. government's case is weak. >> the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. >> tao was released on an unsecured $50,000 bond with travel restrictions. her next court appearance is set for february 6th in oakland, anser hassan abc seven news. >> that indictment details alleged bribes spent on a negative mailer that helped shengtao just before the 2022 oakland mayor's election. >> and that raises

and his son andy duong. they face charges including bribery, mail fraud and wire fraud. abc seven news reporter lena howland has more. >> seven months after the fbi raided former mayor xiang yu's house in oakland, we are finally getting some answers now. this 22 page indictment alleges that tao and her partner, andre jones, accepted $95,000 worth of bribes and left a money trail to show for it. now, this is video of andre jones showing up to the oakland courthouse ahead of his arraignment. he didn't take any questions from us, but yesterday his attorney told us he was planning to turn himself in. today, we also watched as andy duong arrived at the same courthouse in a white suit. right before this happened, federal prosecutors held a press conference detailing the indictment. they said the illegal scheme began in october of 2022, just a month before the mayoral, before the mayoral election. and the indictment alleges that tao made commitments to take official action that would benefit the duong. that include

and the lawyers for david duong had this response. mr. duong denies wrongdoing and will vigorously defend these allegations in court. he looks forward to prevailing in this case and continuing his decades of service, philanthropy and devotion to our community and the bay area. end of statement. now, the indictment details alleged bribes were spent on a negative mailer that helped sheng tao just before the 2022 oakland mayor's election. it raises an intriguing question could we actually have a different mayor, had that money not exchanged hands, as authorities allege? abc seven news i-team reporter dan noyes first broke details of the flier back in june, and spoke with a man who tao edged out and any comment about what's happening in his white suit and white tennis shoes. >> andy duong would not answer questions as he entered federal court to face bribery, conspiracy, mail and wire fraud charges in connection with former oakland mayor xiang tao. but the indictment says in exchange for future favors, contracts and political appointments, du

and the lawyers for david duong had this response. mr. duong denies wrongdoing and will vigorously defend these allegations in court. he looks forward to prevailing in this case and continuing his decades of service, philanthropy and devotion to our community and the bay area. end of statement. now, the indictment details alleged bribes were spent on a negative mailer that helped sheng tao just before the 2022 oakland mayor's election. it raises an intriguing question could we actually have a different mayor, had that money not exchanged hands, as authorities allege? abc seven news i-team reporter dan noyes first broke details of the flier back in june, and spoke with a man who tao edged out and any comment about what's happening in his white suit and white tennis shoes. >> andy duong would not answer questions as he entered federal court to face bribery, conspiracy, mail and wire fraud charges in connection with former oakland mayor xiang tao. but the indictment says in exchange for future favors, contracts and political appointments, du

owned by the duong family. for recycling services the city of oakland had with one of david and andy's companies. and her agreement to use influence to appoint a high level city official to benefit the duongs business interest. >> reporter: in return, prosecutors say the duongs went to work for then mayoral candidate sheng thao. >> the financing of a negative mailer campaign. >> reporter: those mailers targeting two of her opponents were requested by this man, mario juarez who was cofounder of a housing company with andy duong and while he is not named in the indictment, our reporting and court documents show that he would be coconspirator one. according to the indictment, following thao's election, coconspirator 1 texted andy to say we may go to jail but we are $100 million richer. to which andy said money buys everything. prosecutors say checks started getting mailed to andre jones. some as large as $35,000. >> providing them as payments disguised as wages for a no show job for jones with the promise of addit

the duongs are a father and on pair who run cal waste solutions. the indictment spans a time period before and after thao took office two years ago. oakland voters recalled her two months ago. our wilson walker looked through the indictment and the allegations against thao. he picks up the story from here. >> we are not just up here. i'm not your traditional politician. >> the indictment alleges that the illegal conspiracy began around october 22 before the november 2022 oakland mayoral election. weeks before that election, thao made commitments to take official actions as mayor that would benefit the duongs. >> reporter: from there, first assistant u.s. attorney patrick robins gave a brief tour of the government's case against the former mayor of oakland. it alleges that sheng thao and her partner, andre jones, offered up city hallhall to two members of the politically influential duong family, david duong and his son, andy. >> examples of promises allegedly made by thao include her agreement to purchase housing units from a company owned by the d

father and son david and andy duong face conspiracy, bribery and fraud charges. both of their attorneys also say they are innocent of all charges and will fight hard in court. meanwhile, those who spearheaded the recall election against house say her indictment even after she was ousted from office, impacts oakland. it's a sad day for oakland. this is not going to inspire confidence in the other in the business community to want to do business in oakland. in oakland. velena jones, nbc, bay area news. now, let's give you a timeline of how the investigation unfolded. it's a little bit complicated. we'll try to keep it straight. back in june, former oakland mayor sheng thao home was searched by the fbi, irs, and the u.s. postal inspection service. three other locations owned by the duong family also raided as part of the fbi's investigation. one of those locations was cal waste. tao said at the time she was innocent of any crime and has consistently, as she there, denied any wrongdoing. since then, the former oakland mayor was recalled by voters in the november elec

level city official to benefit the duong's business interests. in exchange, the duong's allegedly paid $75,000 for campaign mailers attacking tao's opponents in her 2022 bid for mayor and $95,000 in direct payments disguised for a no show job. all four pled not guilty in federal court in oakland on friday. tao alone faces six counts related to bribery, conspiracy and mail and wire fraud. she faces a maximum of 95 years in prison and upwards of $1.5 million in fines. but tao's lawyer, who spoke after the hearing, claims the evidence in the u.s. government's case is weak. >> the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. >> tao was released on an unsecured $50,000 bond with travel restrictions. her next court appearance is set for february 6th in oakland, anser hassan. abc seven news. >> now, those campaign mailers might have made a big impact. could we actually have had a different mayor, had that money not exchanged hands? abc seven ne

now, in exchange for that, the duong's allegedly provided various payments. one was a $75,000 mailer campaign on behalf of tao during that election. that, of course, is something we have previously reported. but today we heard a new allegation and that is $95,000 in payments towards a promised sum of some $300,000 in return for this influence at city hall. now, of course, everyone will remember mayor tao coming out and offering an impassioned denial of all of these charges. several days after those raids across the east bay. here is a bit of her press conference from back in june, >>>>and i want to be crystal clear. i have done nothing wrong. i can tell you with confidence that this investigation is not about me. i have not been charged with a crime and i am confident that i will not be charged with a crime because i am innocent. >>>>all right then, mayor tao issued that defiant denial of these allegations in the days after her home was raided. but the indictment released today, describes her as being very much involved with this alleged scheme. there are tex

do you think that it was initially a duong family investigation? and then somehow maybe the former mayor got tied up in that? what do you think? well, i think that's a good question, marcus. i mean, yeah, it's complicated because i mean, oakland really for a couple of years has just struggled and struggled and struggled. and mayoral politics there have been struggling. and yes, the songs were on their radar. and the thing that's super sad about this is, you know, this sheng thao is a remarkable story. and somebody who sort of pulled themselves up by the proverbial bootstraps and all that she was able to accomplish. and she's always advocated that she did nothing wrong. but, you know, it's a complicated landscape to fundraise for, to, you know, when you're not a wealthy person, to get people to contribute to your campaign. and that's really what it started, is they're saying that she got money from the songs for her campaign, and that they funneled that money through the boyfriend rather than to her. and that's and some of the checks were mailed, an

. >>> thao and davis and andy duong's are named in the indictment. they run callaway solutions, a recycling solution. stemming from a period before and after thao took office two years ago. oakland voters recalled her a monthing a. >> we are not just up here. i'm not your traditional politician. >> reporter: the illegal conspiracy began around october 22 before the november 2022 oakland mayoral election. weeks before that election, thao made commitments to take official actions, as mayor, that would benefit the duong's. >> reporter: from there, patrick robins gave a brief tour of the government's case against the former of mayor, alleged them offered up influence to two members of the politically influential family. >> and alleged promises made by thao including the agreement to purchase housing units from a company owned by the duong family. her agreement to ensure the extension of contract for the recycling services that the city of oakland had. her agreement to use influence to benefit the business interest. >> reporter: in return, prosecutors say

her agreement to secure a contract for recycling services that the city had with one of david duong'snies. and her agreement to use influence to benefit the duongs' business interests. >> reporter: in return, the prosecutors say they went to work for sheng thao. >> targeting thao's political rivals. >> reporter: as we reported last year, those mailers, targeting two of thao's opponents, were requested by this man, mario juarez. juarez was cofounder of a housing company with andy duong, and while he's not named in the indictment, our reporting and court documents show that juarez would be co- conspirator one, and according to the indictment, following thao's election, co- conspirator one texted andy duong to say, "we may go to jail, but we are $100 million richer," to which andy is said to have replied, "money buys everything" and as thao's mayorship unfolded, prosecutors say checks started getting mailed to andre jones, some as large as $35,000. >> providing jones and thao with $95,000 in direct payments, disguised as wages for no- show job, for jones, with the promise of additional p

also in this indictment, two members of the duong family, the duong's, are a powerful east bay family that own multiple businesses, including a prefab housing company and a recycling company contracted by the city of oakland. the indictment comes months after the fbi raided tao's home while she was mayor. prosecutors claim tao and her boyfriend, jones, agreed to steer business to the duong's in exchange for money and other perks. the multi year long investigation also alleges that the duong's and an unnamed coconspirator were behind a smear campaign targeting mayor thao's political opponents.. tao jones and the duong's all face conspiracy, bribery and fraud charges. the defendants used bribes, mail fraud, wire fraud and other illegal practices to manipulate and corruptly influence the levers of local government. the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe, when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. federal prosecutors say the scheme started in october of 2022, a month before tao was elected as oakland's mayor. ta

family, andy and david duong, are inside. they all entered not guilty pleas. mayor tao was very quiet. she had brief answers, very calm, no signs of emotion. their defense attorney spoke afterwards, and the fbi, u.s. attorney's, postal investigators all announced the charges just hours ago at the federal building in san francisco. here's what they had to say. >> our communities depend on local government for critical services. the public needs to know it can trust those in charge of city hall to work for the best interests of the people of oakland. this public trust is broken when elected officials agree to a pay to play system to benefit themselves. >> the indictment repeatedly refers to an unnamed coconspirator who worked with the wongs. the indictment alleges former mayor sheng tao and her partner, andre jones, tried to cover up cash payments for a no show salary to jones from the dongs. it also alleges that they covered up funding for campaign mailers from david and andy duong, whose family operates recycling and housing

we've reached out to the duongs and have not heard back. while the fbi has not released any details on the scope of its investigation, a federal grand jury issued a subpoena requesting documents related to sheng thao's mayoral campaign as well as communications related to andre jones. thao has denied jones had any role in her administration. >> the standard to indict somebody is relatively low. it doesn't require you prove they are probably guilty or guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. it only requires that you prove there's probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, but as we discussed earlier, federal prosecutors usually want to have sufficient evidence to have confidence that they can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. >> reporter: the subpoena also requested documents related to evolutionary homes, a company involving the duongs and mario juarez. last month the alameda county district attorney filed a motion alleging juarez and california waste solutions worked to help thao win the mayor's race in 2022 in exchange for access t

city official to benefit the duong's business interests. in exchange, the duong's allegedly paid $75,000 for campaign mailers attacking tao's opponents in her 2022 bid for mayor and $95,000 in direct payments disguised for a no show job. all four pled not guilty in federal court in oakland on friday. tao alone faces six counts related to bribery, conspiracy and mail and wire fraud. she faces a maximum of 95 years in prison and upwards of $1.5 million in fines. but tao's lawyer, who spoke after the hearing, claims the evidence in the u.s. government's case is weak. >> the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. >> tao was released on an unsecured $50,000 bond with travel restrictions. her next court appearance is set for february 6th in oakland, anser hassan abc seven news. >> city leaders who worked side by side with shang tao reacted to the corruption accusations. >> abc seven news reporter luz pena spoke to several oakland l

tao and her partner, andre jones, are accused of accepting bribes from the duong family. recycling contractor. federal prosecutors describe it as a pay to play scheme. nbc bay area's velena jones has been covering the story since it first unfolded and joins us with the latest. because we know that this is an eight count indictment. 21 pages that were laid out in this unsealed indictment. and it focuses on the former mayor, mayor sheng thao, as well as her partner, andre jones, and their connection to the duong family, the u.s. attorney's office saying today that they knowingly the duong family accepted, gave bribes to both the mayor and her partner jones in relation to a connection to her time as mayor. there were several promises that they say were made. the u.s. attorney's office says this all started back in october of 2022. they say this has been a lengthy investigation and they say they are still investigating. take a listen. the indictment charges a scheme that the defendants entered into, knowing that bribes would be offered and accepted by tao and jones in exchang

según la acusación, tao se comprometió a beneficiar los negocios de los duong.iendo el contrato de la compañía de reciclaje con la ciudad, ordenando la compra de unidades de vivienda modulares de la firma de los duong e incluso nombrando funcionarios recomendados por ellos en exchange. t. a cambio, los duong presuntamente hicieron pagos hasta hoy a jones en varias formas, entre ellas el financiamiento de una campaña de correo en contra de los opositores de tao y dándoles 95.000 $ encubiertos como el pago de un supuesto trabajo de jones. según esta acusación, ella y su pareja además tomaron acciones deliberadas para encubrir los beneficios económicos que presuntamente recibió. luciendo tranquila y hasta sonriente al interior de la corte, sheng thao se declaró no culpable de los cargos itself is. el pliego de cargos está repleto de acusaciones, pero no está repleto de evidencia. se basa en acusaciones de un cómplice desconocido que creemos que cuando se revelen las pruebas mostrará que mi cliente no ha cometido ningún delito. 4 de los cargos que enfrenta tao conll

lawyers for andy duong released a statement that says in part, quote, our client and friend andy duong is innocent of the charges. we've kept quiet despite the media frenzy of the past months, in the hope that the government would come to see through objective investigation that the allegations are baseless. we look forward to clearing his good name before the court and a jury of his peers. the judge did allow tao, jones and the wongs to remain free on unsecured bonds with some limits on travel, and they had to surrender their passports. the next court date is set for february 6th, and obviously central to this case, that unnamed coconspirator that we hear about in the indictment. >> is there any discussion about who that person may be? >> i asked both tao's attorney as well as the prosecutors. no one was named. there are thoughts that it could be a man named mario juarez. we've reported on him when the alameda county district attorney's office said in a court filing back in december that he was a go between with the wongs and jones. so we will see if that comes up. but at this point,

según la acusación, tao se comprometió a beneficiar los negocios de los duong.claje con la ciudad, ordenando la compra de unidades de vivienda modulares de la firma de los duong e incluso nombrando funcionarios recomendados por ellos en exchange. a cambio, los duong presuntamente hicieron pagos hasta hoy a jones en varias formas, entre ellas el financiamiento de una campaña de correo en contra de los opositores de tao y dándoles 95.000 $. estos encubiertos como el pago de un supuesto trabajo de jones. según esta acusación, ella y su pareja además tomaron acciones deliberadas para encubrir los beneficios económicos que presuntamente recibió. luciendo tranquila y hasta sonriente al interior de la corte, sheng thao se declaró no culpable de los cargos itself is full. el pliego de cargos está repleto de acusaciones, pero no está repleto de evidencia. se basa en acusaciones de un cómplice desconocido que creemos que cuando se revelen las pruebas mostrará que mi cliente no ha cometido ningún delito. 4 de los cargos que enfrenta tao conllevan una pena máxima de 20 años

the indictment states that city official was to be approved by david and andy duong.here, a father and son of a high profile family in oakland, which has contracts with the city for its recycling program. >> the wong's have been known entities in oakland politics for more than a decade, and the concerns about them have been well known. >> the east bay times identified the alleged individual to be larry gallegos, who is listed as a project manager for the economic and workforce development department. in a statement to abc seven news on tuesday, the city of oakland confirmed that gallegos resigned on friday. there are now concerns about the recycling contract with the duong's company, california waste solutions. >> any city council member who wants to raise concerns about who the city of oakland does business with, now would be the time to speak up. >> the agreement that dates back to july of 2015 is a 20 year service contract with an option for two five year extensions, which adds up to the ten years the duong's wanted tao to get them, as indicated in the indictment.

they also raided three properties linked to the politically influential duong company and their company california waste solutions which holds oakland's curbside recycling contract. while the fbi has not released details on the scope of its investigation, a federal grand jury issued a subpoena requesting documents related to sheng thao's mayoral campaign as well as communications related to andre jones. thao has denied jones had any role in her administration. >> the standard to indict somebody is relatively low. it doesn't require that you prove they are probably guilty or they're guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. it only requires that you prove there's probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, but federal prosecutors usually want to have sufficient evidence to have confidence that they can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. >> reporter: the subpoena also requested documents related to evolutionary homes, a company involving the duongs and mario juarez. last month the alameda county district attorney filed a motion alleging that juarez and california waste solutions worked

we've reached out to the duongs and have not yet heard back. while the fbi has not released any details on the scope of its investigation, a federal grand jury issued a subpoena requesting documents related to sheng thao's mayoral campaign as well as communications related to andre jones with, thao denying jones had any role in her administration. >> the standard to indict somebody is relatively low. it doesn't require you prove that they are probably guilty or they're guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. it only requires you prove there's probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, but as we discussed earlier, federal prosecutors usually want to have sufficient evidence to have confidence that they can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. >> reporter: the subpoena requested documents related to evolutionary homes, a company involving the duongs and mario juarez. last month the alameda county district attorney filed a motion alleging that juarez and california waste solutions worked to help thao win the mayor's race in 2022 in exchange fo

attorney's office alleges the four conspired to funnel city business to companies owned by the duong's and in exchange. investigators say tao and jones received money and benefits. for other. federal prosecutors say the scheme started in october 2022, a month before tao was elected as oakland's mayor. tao has consistently said she is innocent of any crime or wrongdoing. if convicted of all counts, each defendant faces a maximum of 95 years in prison, but andy duong faces up to an additional five years if convicted of lying to federal agents. okay, now to the impending ban of tiktok. come sunday, the u.s. ban will go into effect. supreme court upheld the law today, putting tiktok's future in question. let's go ahead and bring in our business and tech reporter scott budman. okay, scott, this is happening just two days. we've all been waiting for sunday, but it looks like the supreme court has spoken. yeah, and this is what we were waiting for, to find out if the court would uphold that law or put a stall on it. the court said no, it listened to the arguments, but it says the law can stan

both tao and the duong's have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. legal analyst stephen clark emphasized azevedo is presumed innocent and has not been charged, but says there could be a link between both cases. i think what the fbi is doing now is widening the investigation from what they had done previously in their search warrants of both sheng thao home as well as others, because when you think about a locality councilman, you don't necessarily think that the fbi would be involved in that investigation unless it involves some type of political criminal activity. san leandro mayor juan gonzalez says azevedo status at city hall has not changed, saying he remains an active councilman who is not currently facing any charges. the fbi might have visited his home for any of a variety of reasons completely unrelated to him as an individual. so at this point in time, there is no change. obviously, we remain attentive to information that may come to us from the fbi. and so that's where we're at right now. no one is ready to officially connect all of the ca

tao's former boyfriend, andre jones, along with oakland businessman david duong and his son andy, face those same charges. prosecutors allege the scheme began in 2022, just before tao was elected mayor. >> weeks before that election, tao made commitments to take official actions as mayor that would benefit the duong's. >> the former mayor and the three other defendants all entered pleas of not guilty. tao stood next to her attorney as he made this statement in her defense. >> the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe, when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. >> well, there's been strong political reaction in oakland to sheng tao's indictment on federal corruption charges. >> lauren taylor, who lost to tao by fewer than 700 votes when he ran against her back in 2022, is outraged by the allegation. taylor announced that he is running for oakland mayor again in the special election that will take place in april. he says tao's win has had serious consequences for the city of oakland. >> my first reaction, literall

the duong's have been the focus of a city probe into campaign contributions. we reached out to tao and her lawyers, but we have not heard back. >> abc seven news insider phil matier is here with us. phil, at the time of the raid, tao said to the fbi, either clear me or charge me. well, now she's been charged, but with what remains to be seen. >> it could be any number of charges, not the least of which would be depriving the public of honest services. that's a way to say that you were cutting deals on the side. now she is maintained not only that, she's innocent. she also maintained that she wasn't the target of the investigation. and she also intimated that the fbi was sort of time this thing in order to do the most damage they could while she was facing a recall election. whatever the case, she was recalled. and now she's facing the possibility of criminal charges. what's it about? well, so far no one is talking officially. but if you look at what the fbi has been subpoenaing from different vantage points and from what they took from the city, it appears tha

. >> her agreement to purchase housing units from a company owned by the duong family, her agreement to ensure the extension of a contract for recycling services that the city of oakland had with one of david and andy wong's companies. >> jones was seen leaving home friday morning for court, as all four defendants appeared an hour later at a hearing that was held at oakland's federal building. all of them entered not guilty pleas. tao's attorney, jeff tsai, spoke immediately afterwards. >> the case is built on allegations from an unknown coconspirator that we believe, when the evidence is revealed, will show that my client has committed no crimes. >> mayor tao was very quiet in court, calm, giving brief answers with no sign of emotion. as she left the building. her attorney said she had no comment. david and andy wong also declined to comment as they left the oakland federal building. lawyers for andy wong released a statement saying he is innocent and, quote, we look forward to clearing his good name before the court and a jury of his peers. the u.s. attorney's office says the fbi r

now there are concerns about the recycling contract with the duong's family company, california wasteolutions. >> not only was oakland for sale, it was on sale for cheap $95,000 and a few other things. it's just boggles the mind how cheap they were willing to sell out the city. >> tao faces a minimum of 95 years in prison. or i should say that is a maximum and upwards of $1.5 million in fines. she'll be back in court on february 6th. president trump has set a date for new tariffs. ahead, the countries he's targeting and a look at the widespread possible consequences, (woman) oh, come on! come on! (vo) fargo lets you do this: (woman) fargo, turn off my debit card! (woman) i found it! i found my card! (vo) and also, this: (woman) fargo, turn on my debit card. (vo) do you fargo? you can, with wells fargo. what else can fargo do? quickly tell you what you spend on things like food. (dad) fargo, what did i spend on groceries this month? (son) hey dad, can the guys stay for dinner? (dad) no... (vo) learn more at wellsfargo.com/getfargo. i'm not happy with the way that pg&e handled the wildf

in addition to the duong's number two residents with an i.d.owed to return home after a fire sparked at moss landing at this battery plant. the plant could remain offline for weeks as officials investigate the cause. number three. we finally have a cease fire in the middle east after 15 months of war. after a tense last minute talks, the israeli government approved a temporary peace deal with hamas. the first phase is set to take effect starting tomorrow. and number four, cooler temperatures and light winds are helping fire crews battle the devastating blazes in southern california. the eaton fire that ripped through altadena and forced evacuations through pasadena is now 73% contained, and the palisades fire is 43% contained this morning. >> number five, we have a blanket of low clouds and fog that will give way to mostly sunny conditions, 50s to low 60s today. >> and number six, walgreens is facing a lawsuit from the department of justice over dispensing unlawful prescriptions. the doj claims the drug provider issued millions of dangerous opi

the same day, they raided the homes of businesses, homes and businesses of multiple members of the duongily, which owns callaway soluons. it's an oakland recycling contractor. tao and her partner have both repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, but the city leaders are concerned. this is really concerning and the impacts of what this means for the integrity of city services and city business is definitely concerning to me as a public official. we have reached out to the city, the former mayor and andre jones, for comment, but we have not heard back. so then there's this question is this connected in some way? tonight we've learned that another east bay politician has had his home raraided by the fbi. the feds searched the home of san leandro city councilman brian azevedo yesterday. the agency is not providing details on why azevedo's home was raided. it is worth noting he and tao were both part of an economic focused trip to vietnam, and that trip was sponsored by another business linked to the duong family. san leandro mayor says azevedo's status at city hall has not changed, although he say

. >> they face up to 95 years in prison, andy duong facing up to 100 years. often the case. >> the accused left a money trail from their deceptive acts of corruption. >> special agent linda nguyen with the irs oakland field office, says the money trail led to a federal indictment that exposed a pay to play scheme where allegedly former oakland mayor xiang tao and her romantic partner andre jones traded

they also allege the duong funded a negative mailer campaign attacking pao tao's political rivals.bi raided tao's home as part of an investigation last june. tao's attorney, meanwhile, is vowing to fight these charges. the mayor looks forward to defending herself against these charges, showing tt there is in fact, no evidence to support these charges, and we will look forward to doing that in the courtroom. if convicted on all six counts against her, tao and her partner jones both face a maximum sentence of 95 years in prison. all four have pleaded not guilty. thieves in the east bay dipped to new lows, stealing 200 bronze vases from several grave sites. it happened at oakmont memorial park cemetery in lafayette. the managing partner tells us they ripped the vases right off of those gravestones. some families telling us they will need to pay more than $800 to replace each vase. it's really sad. it's like i'm a widow. i don't have the money to replace this. you know i didn't do it. i don't have no respect for anybody who wants to do that for money. i feel like it's totally disrespec

the indictment states that city official was to be approved by david and andy duong there, a father and of a high profile family in oakland, which has contracts with the city for its recycling program. >> the wong's have been known entities in oakland politics for more than a decade, and the concerns about them have been well known. >> the east bay times identified the alleged individual to be larry gallegos, who is listed as a project manager for the economic and workforce development department. in a statement to abc seven news on tuesday, the city of oakland confirmed that gallegos resigned on friday. there are now concerns about the recycling contract with the duong's company, california waste solutions. >> any city council member who wants to raise concerns about who the city of oakland does business with, now would be the time to speak up. >> the agreement that dates back to july of 2015 is a 20 year service contract with an option for two five year extensions, which adds up to the ten years the duong wanted tao to get them, as indicated in the indictment. >> not only was oakland

we also have more information on the duong family and the accusations against them.ur website, ktvu.com or download our fox local app. you can tap in on your cell phone or on your smart tv. san francisco unified owes more than 100 special education students, nearly 550,000 hours of legally required services they did not receive last semester. based on current calculations, the missed time will cost the district over $1 million. a report in the chronicle says the district needed more than 250 special education teachers and staff at the start of this school year, after the department came up $30 million short in funding. [music] a historic ride for one woman in san francisco. why the mayor says she embodies the spirit of the city. and meteologist mark tamayo will ha y "the doctor will see you now." but do they really? do they see that crick in your neck? that ache in your heart? will they see that funny little thing that wasn't there last year? a new bounce in your step? the way your retinal scan connects to your blood sugar? at kaiser permanente all of us work togethe

duong family owns cal waste solutions, a recycling company based in oakland. in november of that year, tao won the oakland mayoral race, and in january of 2023, she officially took office, promising change and quick action to fix city streets. >> i know that we can come together to make sure that we are safer, cleaner and ensure that we're putting families first in the city of oakland. >> fast forward to 2024. xiang tao's rental home was raided by the fbi on june 20th. federal agents were seen removing boxes of materials, including laptops. david and andy wong's homes also raided that same day, as well as their company headquarters four days after the raid. tao addressed the public for the first time, delivering a fiery speech at city hall, claiming her innocence. >> i want to be crystal clear. i have done nothing wrong. i am confident that i will not be charged with a crime because i am innocent. >> five months after delivering that speech, oakland voters ousted shengtao from office. >> ktvu jana katsuyama begins our coverage tonight with more on the unsealed

we've reached out to the duongs and have not heard back yet. has not released any details on the scope of its investigation, a federal grand jury issued a subpoena requesting documents related to sheng thao's mayoral campaign as well as communications related to andre jones. thao has denied jones had any role in her investigation. >> the standard to indictment somebody is relatively low. it doesn't require that you prove they're probably guilty or they're guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. only requires you prove there's probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed. but as we discussed earlier, federal prosecutors usually want to have sufficient evidence to have confidence that they can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. >> reporter: the subpoena also requested documents related to evolutionary homes, a company involving the duongs and mario juarez. last month, the alameda county district attorney filed a motion alleging that juarez and california waste solutions worked to help thao win the mayor's race in 2022. and in exchange for

duong denies wrongdoing and will vigorously defend these allegations in court. he looks forward to prevailing in this case of continuing his decades of service, philanthropy and devotion to our community and the bay area, quote, that family owned several businesses in oakland. we first learned about them and their connections with city leaders following the fbi search of their homes. >> last summer, the drawing family owns oakland's recycling service, california waste solutions. it claims cws is the largest recycling company in northern california with 300 employees. the drawings also appeared politicians at every level and it social media full of pictures of him with multiple politicians, including tao her former opponent lauren taylor and former congresswoman barbara lee and governor gavin newsom. the enemies business association, which david wrong chairs also organized a trip to vietnam in 2023. how it ended that trip as the mayor oakland. well, if you'd like to read the 22 page indictment against how you can head to our website. kron 4 dot com there. you'll

that they shouldn't even be dealing with that or talking about that type of stuff. >> webb said andy duong indicated he would take care of it, and that he had already paid $50,000 for the project. mario suarez is not charged or even named in the indictment released today. he could be listed as coconspirator one. i asked his lawyer, ernie castillo, if warz is a coopera texted. i can't discuss the situation at all at the moment. for the upcoming mayor's race, lauren taylor has filed to be on the ballot once again, hoping for a more level playing field. >> this time. i think it says to all of us, we absolutely have to stay vigilant. we have to make sure that we have the right leaders in place who are going to make the right decisions, who have the right judgment, and are not simply going to continue, you know, business as usual. >> you have to consider lauren taylor, a leading candidate for oakland mayor in the upcoming special election, along with former member of congress barbara lee and more than a dozen others. they include tao's former chief of staff, renea webb, also running for mayor f

several of the properties belonged to the duong family, which runs california waste solutions. it has a contract with the city of oakland. abc seven news insider phil matier connected some of those dots for us. >> if you look at what the fbi has been subpoenaing from different vantage points and from what they tk from the city, it appears thattk they are interested in a deal by the duong family and another man by the name of mario juarez, who may or may not be part of this investigation, who proposed to the city the idea of building a village of some 600 or 300 tiny homes, you know, tiny homes where you could house the homeless. and they were going to build them on the oakland old army base. and it was a $90 million deal. >> tao repeatedly has denied any wrongdoing and says she has not was not the target of the investigation. >> voters recalled shengtao from office in november and now the candidate who narrowly lost to her when she was elected is back in the race today. former oakland city council member lauren taylor announced plans to run for mayor. he spoke one on one with a

investigators also raided properties linked with the duong family. they were investigated for allegedly making illicit campaign donations to thao and other politicians. investigators have not revealed what possible crime they were looking into. when we interviewed thao last summer, she offered a blanket denial of any wrongdoing. >> i am not the subject of investigation. i have done nothing wrong. >> the u.s. attorney's office is planning to make a major announcement tomorrow morning. the charges against thao could be included in that announcement. we'll have the latest for you on our evening edition at 5:00. >>> now to the latest on the southern california wildfires, governor newsom issued an executive order aimed at helping people displaced by the disaster. it looks to remove red tape and streamline construction of temporary housing units and also protects renters from price gouging on hotels and rental units. here's a 3d look at the extent of the damage from the eaton fire. it has burned more than 22 square miles across the pasadena angeles nationa

tao's home last summer, along with several other locations, including properties belonging to the duong family. the family holds oakland's curbside recycling contract through their california waste solutions firm. that family has been the focus of a city probe into campaign contributions in front of cameras. days after the raid, former mayor tao denied any wrongdoing. >> and i want to be crystal clear i have done nothing wrong. i can tell you with confidence that this investigation is not about me. >> it's not clear what charges tao faces. we reached out to attorneys and investigators, but have not heard back. webb testified in front of a grand jury last month. >> i was informed that there was pay to play, you know, schemes going on, that there was corruptive behavior going on in that administration. >> thursday evening, abc7 news insider phil matier says the federal indictment has profound implications. >> for a long time, it was the question was, was she involved or was she just in the room? was did something actually happen or is it a an associate of hers? is it her live in boyfriend