OAKLAND, Calif. – The alleged pay-to-play bribery scheme between former Oakland mayor Sheng Thao and the city’s recycling contractor hit a snag in 2023, when word began to leak of “suspected drug use and activity involving prostitutes” by another East Bay politician during their high-profile shared delegation trip to Vietnam, federal prosecutors claim in new court filings.
The dispute between Thao and the Duong family – which runs the city’s recycling contractor, California Waste Solutions – is among several major revelations included in recent court filings by federal prosecutors in their sprawling East Bay corruption case. Together, the motions ask a judge to allow a trove of evidence – much of which has been kept secret until now – that the defendants want kept from jurors when they head to trial on Oct. 19.
U.S. Chief District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has yet to rule on whether prosecutors will be allowed to air any of the allegations. Thao, her romantic partner, Andre Jones, and the father-son business duo of David and Andy Duong have all pleaded not guilty to a host of bribery and conspiracy charges in the case, for which they were all indicted in January 2025…