Federal investigators are ordering the city of Oakland to turn over documents involving a prominent and influential local family that has a waste management contract with the city, as well as Mayor Sheng Thao and his partner, according to documents reviewed by The Times.
The federal subpoena, issued five days after federal agents raided Thao’s home on June 20, confirms that there is an ongoing federal grand jury investigation that appears to be focused on Cal Waste Solutions Inc.; its owners, members of the Duong family; and its dealings with Oakland city officials, particularly its mayor.
The eight-page subpoena, dated June 25, asks the city to turn over all documents and communications related to Cal Waste Solutions, all of its employees and representatives, and any documents involving appointments to key city positions.
The deadline is Thursday.
A Justice Department spokesman did not immediately respond to questions about the subpoena.
Federal investigators are also requesting documents related to the 2022 Oakland mayoral election, when Thao was elected as the first Hmong mayor of a major U.S. city.
The subpoena also reveals the possible involvement of Thao's business partner, Andre Jones, in the investigation. Investigators asked the city to turn over calendar entries and records related to Thao and Jones' meetings from June 1 to the present.
Thao's lawyers declined to comment on the subpoena but said the investigation involving Thao does not involve criminal charges or allegations.
Thao has denied any wrongdoing.
“I can tell you with confidence that this investigation is not about me,” the mayor said at a news conference three days after FBI agents raided her home.
It remains unclear exactly what the focus of the federal investigation is, but the June 25 subpoena offered a slightly broader look at the scope of the federal probe, the latest scandal to hit the Bay Area city that recently faced a mayoral recall effort, a growing budget deficit and concerns about crime that have driven out major businesses.
Shortly after city officials received the subpoena, Oakland’s city attorney ordered staff in an email to preserve all records related to Thao, Jones and the Duong family, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
A spokesperson for the Oakland City Attorney's office confirmed the existence of the memo to staff but declined in an email to provide a copy or answer questions about it, referring to the memo as “a confidential attorney-client communication between the Oakland City Attorney and other members of the City of Oakland staff.”
The federal subpoena, issued by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California, requests multiple documents involving the Duong family, including David, Andy, Kristina, Victor and Michael Duong.
For at least five years, the family has been at the center of an investigation involving the state Fair Political Practices Commission and the Oakland Public Ethics Commission. The family is accused of using “straw donors” to skirt legal limits on donations and pad the campaign coffers of elected officials as the family’s businesses sought city contracts.
Family-owned Cal Waste Solutions currently provides recycling services in Oakland.
After the warrants were executed, Cal Waste Solutions officials issued a statement saying they were surprised by the searches and had cooperated with investigators.
“We believe we have not engaged in or committed any illegal activity and are awaiting the decision of the law enforcement agency,” the company’s statement read.
A company spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
But the state and local investigation into the family's dealings with city officials in the area paints a troubling picture.
Court records reveal that the Fair Political Practices Commission has been investigating political donations made by the family since 2019. The agency alleges that Andy Duong and his former business associates used friends and business connections to make political contributions and then reimbursed them in cash to conceal the true origin of the money.
“CWS was the true source of at least 93 contributions to multiple local campaign committees,” the court filing reads, with the goal of “currying favor with candidates and providing them with greater access.”
The agency tracked down questionable donations made in Oakland, as well as in San Jose and other parts of Santa Clara County, where the family sought to do business.
The investigation found that multiple contributions had been made to Thao's 2018 campaign for City Council, including “seven of which were admitted reimbursements by or on behalf of [Andy] “Duo.”
A former partner told investigators that, according to court records, he saw Andy Duong take cash out of a drawer in his office at Cal Waste Solutions to reimburse people for donations.
FPPC officials confirmed that their investigation is still ongoing.
Federal officials are also requesting documents related to the city’s declaration of a local emergency regarding homelessness, and any communications related to the former Oakland military base, a site that had been considered for possible housing for homeless people.
