Jurors in the federal corruption trial of former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and three co-defendants heard some evidence Wednesday that had not been made public previously.
A new figure has emerged in the trial of Sheng Thao, Andre Jones, and businessmen David and Andy Duong, in the form of a witness for the prosecution. Cecilia Mendez, a former employee of California Waste Solutions, was apparently making secret recordings of the goings-on at her workplace. And as NBC Bay Area reports, jurors heard about 40 minutes of audio that Mendez surreptitiously recorded of board meetings at California Waste Solutions in which the Duongs and Mario Juarez, the man they partnered with on an another business, Evolutionary Homes, seem to be discussing their bribery scheme involving Thao.
Thao had apparently made a promise to the Duongs to have the city of Oakland purchase some of their modular homes for the homeless — made out of shipping containers — in exchange for financial support for her mayoral campaign.
Juarez can reportedly be heard on the recording saying, "I think it's disappointing she's not keeping promises. Will be problem for her re-election."
He adds, "I have long memory and I'm pretty vengeful. There's consequences for not keeping your end of the bargain."
Per NBC Bay Area, the recordings also include discussions of Jones, who was Thao's live-in romantic partner at the time, asking for more money from the company. Federal investigators have said that the Duongs gave Jones a no-show job and a title at Evolutionary Homes with a salary of $300,000, of which he had reportedly been paid $95,000 at the time of the FBI's 2024 raid on his and Thao's home.
The defense is seeking to discredit both Mendez and Juarez based on their own illegal activities. Like Juarez, who is cooperating with the prosecution and is their star witness in exchange for likely lenience in sentencing, Mendez was reportedly granted immunity by federal prosecutors for making her secret recordings. And per NBC, Mendez testified that she was convicted in 2019 of grand theft, identity theft, and acting as a real estate agent without a license.
Juarez may have played a key role in the early days of the investigation, because it's clear that someone — perhaps the Duongs — was mad at him. A week after the feds descended on Thao's home and the homes and business of the Duongs, Juarez's house was shot up by an unknown assailant, an incident about which we've learned very little in the years since.
Prosecutors are attempting to prove there was a clear quid pro quo scheme occurring, with Juarez acting as a "straw donor" for the Duongs during Thao's mayoral campaign, and all three helping to get her elected with the promise that she would pay them back with a lucrative city contract for Evolutionary Homes.
Thao also is alleged to have helped California Waste Solutions get a 10-year extension on their curbside recycling contract with the city.
As ABC 7 reported last week, jurors were shown screenshots of what appears to be notes written in the iPhone Notes app from Andy Duong's phone that clearly lays out the quid pro quo. The note says things like "we will advance $40K cash to complete mailers" and "we produce websites" referring to campaign attack mailers and websites targeting Thao's opponents in the 2022 mayor's race. The note then says "For:" and lists the promises Thao allegedly made to extend their recycling contract, push through a deal they wanted to move their recycling plant to Port of Oakland land, and purchase "300 of our modular units at a price of $300,000 each."
Previously: Sheng Thao's Former Chief of Staff Testifies About Mayor's Odd Behavior, Ill-Fated Vietnam Trip
