Federal officials announced Friday that they have indicted former Oakland Mayor Sheng Tao, her longtime boyfriend and the father-son team who ran a company that provided recycling services in the city on bribery charges, alleging a vast corruption scheme involving cash payments and campaign mailings. in exchange for city contracts.

The federal charges come two months after Thao was ousted from office, fueled by voter dissatisfaction over crime, homelessness and a city government that is not responsive to citizens' needs. It's a sharp turnaround for Tao, who takes office in January 2023, with the media praising her journey from homelessness to CEO and celebrating her as the first Hmong American to lead a major U.S. city.

The indictment was handed down by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in Oakland on Jan. 9 and unsealed on Friday. It charged Thao; her boyfriend, Andre Jones; and two local waste management company executives, David Duong and his son Andy, with alleged bribery and conspiracy. Andy Duong is also accused of lying to federal agents.

The indictment alleges that in the weeks leading up to her election as Oakland mayor in the fall of 2022, Thao promised to hand over contracts to the Duong family's recycling company, Cal Waste Solutions, in exchange for campaign mailers targeting her opponents and payments to her boyfriend. "Absent" work. Jones ultimately received $95,000, according to the indictment. It also alleges that Thao promised to have the city of Oakland purchase modular housing units for the homeless from the Duong family's real estate company and to appoint people chosen by the Duong family to powerful city positions.

Thao pleaded not guilty during Friday's arraignment and was released on $50,000 bail, local news reported. Jones also pleaded not guilty.

"The mayor is innocent. She looks forward to the opportunity to defend herself in court," Tao's attorney, Jeff Tsai, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "This indictment lacks anything that actually shows the mayor participated in the scheme the government describes. We are very confident that we can defend the mayor against these charges."

In a statement on Friday, Andy Young's attorney called the accusations against his client "baseless" and said they were "nothing more than fabrications and delusions cobbled together by those who lack basic credibility." Fueled by gossip and assumptions, the statement said Duong is "the latest in a long line of Asian Americans who have been unfairly singled out for daring to be active in politics and forced to pay the price."

David Duong also denied wrongdoing.

The accusations shocked Oakland's political class. Former U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, who represented the East Bay area in Congress for more than two decades and is currently running for mayor in a special election in April, issued a statement calling the allegations "devastating."

"Under no circumstances should secret pay-to-play schemes that erode public trust be tolerated," she said. "City hall must not be for sale."

Rumor 1 corruption investigation Incidents involving Thao have continued for months since the FBI raided his home in June.

Thao told a heated press conference at the time that she was not a target of the investigation.

"I want to make it clear. I did nothing wrong," she said in a tearful speech days after FBI agents gathered at her home and left with the boxes. "I can tell you with confidence that this investigation is not about me."

She also questioned the FBI's tactics: "If I were wealthy, if I went to an elite private school, or if I came from a wealthy background, things wouldn't be the way they are now," she said.

The same day Thao's home was raided, agents executed search warrants at California Waste Solutions' Oakland offices and the home of David and Andy Duong. The company issued a statement at the time denying any involvement in illegal activities.

In addition to the FBI investigation, the Oakland Public Ethics Commission and the state Fair Political Practices Commission have been investigating allegations that members of the Duong family used "straw donors" to circumvent donation limits and support the campaigns of local elected officials.

The 22-page indictment unsealed Friday contains numerous text exchanges that allegedly lay out the scheme, sometimes including an AutoCorrect prank.

The indictment alleges that in October 2022, about a month before Thao was elected, a person known as "Co-conspirator 1" wrote to Andy Duong, "Sheng will call you $$."

Duong allegedly responded: "Haha. What money?

"She needs to," allegedly replied Co-conspirator 1, adding: "I said you were the committee." A subsequent text message clarified: "Committed."

In another series of text messages in late November 2022 after Thao was elected, the two discussed concerns about the possible exposure of the scheme, according to the indictment.

"So we could go to jail," Co-Conspirator 1 wrote to Duong, the indictment states. "But we're $100 million richer."

Andy Duong allegedly responded: "Money can buy everything."