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FBI raids home of Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao

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The FBI carried out a search warrant at the home of Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao earlier this morning, according to ABC7.

Agency spokesperson Cameron Polan told The Oaklandside the FBI is “conducting court authorized law enforcement activity on Maiden Lane and View Crest Court.” He also confirmed that the agency was conducting activities at other properties in Oakland. Polan said the agency was unable to provide additional information at this time.

Property records link a home on 80 Maiden Lane to Thao. A representative from Thao’s office told The Oaklandside that all inquiries are being referred to the FBI.

FBI agents also entered a property on View Crest Court that appears to belong to Andy Duong. Multiple FBI agents were seen leaving the property at 10:40am today. Duong’s family owns California Waste Solutions, Oakland’s curbside recycling provider. Duong’s company also serves San Jose. The Oaklandside was unable to reach Duong.

The FBI hasn’t stated what it’s searching for. However, the Duong family is known to have ties to Thao and other politicians in Oakland and the Bay Area. Oakland’s Public Ethics Commission launched an investigation in 2020 into allegations that the Duong family illegally laundered campaign contributions to multiple members of the Oakland City Council. The commission’s enforcement chief Simon Russell told The Oaklandside this case is still under investigation. Russell said he couldn’t share anything further, citing confidentiality rules.

FBI agents were seen inside the home of Andy Duong on Thurs. June 20, 2024 while a similar search was being conducted a few miles away at Thao’s home. Credit: Darwin BondGraham

Last summer, Thao and other officials traveled to Vietnam as part of a trade delegation to promote Oakland as a trading partner. That trip was partly sponsored and planned by the Vietnamese American Business Association, a group led by members of the Duong family.

This is a developing story that will be updated.


White man with long hair in a bun, around age 30, stands with his arms crossed.

Eli Wolfe reports on City Hall for The Oaklandside. He was previously a senior reporter for San José Spotlight, where he had a beat covering Santa Clara County’s government and transportation. He also worked as an investigative reporter for the Pasadena-based newsroom FairWarning, where he covered labor, consumer protection and transportation issues. He started his journalism career as a freelancer based out of Berkeley. Eli’s stories have appeared in The Atlantic, NBCNews.com, Salon, the San Francisco Chronicle, and elsewhere. Eli graduated from UC Santa Cruz and grew up in San Francisco.


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