A federal judge has refused an attempt to toss out evidence that FBI agents seized from the homes of former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, her partner Andre Jones, and recycling executives David Duong and his son Andy.
In a decision on Monday, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that the defendants in the bribery case failed to prove that FBI agents intentionally omitted information in their request for search warrants that were executed nearly two years ago.
Rogers’ ruling was unsurprising to court watchers who attended a hearing last month, where she appeared openly skeptical of the arguments being advanced by the defendants.
Thao, Jones, and the Duongs claimed that federal agents should have disclosed information in the affidavit about an alleged co-conspirator, Mario Juarez, who has been repeatedly accused of fraud and other crimes. They also accused FBI agents of selectively editing text messages between Juarez and Andy Duong that showed racial animus against Jones, and of including contradictory information about a shooting outside Juarez’s Fruitvale home in May 2024.
Some of that evidence obtained by the FBI from the June 2024 raids was used to build the indictment that federal prosecutors unsealed last year, which accuses the four defendants of participating in a bribery scheme over city contracts and other favors.
But Rogers’ ruling found there was no proof that the government improperly withheld information from the magistrate judge who approved the affidavit.
“Defendants present no credible evidence that the government intended to deceive or acted with reckless disregard,” Rogers wrote. “Therefore, they have failed to satisfy the first step in the analysis to make a substantial preliminary showing that the affidavit underlying the search warrant contained intentionally or recklessly false statements or misleading omissions.”
A small but important detail in Rogers’ ruling was her decision to finally disclose the identity of “Co-conspirator 1,” the man referred to in dozens of court documents and who the government has partially relied on to build its case against Oakland’s former mayor and others. That man is Mario Juarez, a Fruitvale businessman and Alameda County politico with a lengthy history of legal disputes and allegations of fraud and other wrongdoing.
Juarez was a business partner with the Duongs in a company called Evolutionary Homes, which aimed to sell high-priced tiny homes to Oakland and other cities. The company never secured any contracts and fell apart after a falling out between the Duongs and Juarez.
All four defendants have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled for a trial on Oct. 19.
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