SF City Hall Shocked by State Sen. Leland Yee's Alleged Criminal Activity
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) — While there had been rumors of improper behavior by State Sen. Leland Yee, the scope of the indictment has many at City Hall by shocked after his arrest Wednesday.
The federal complaint charged 26 individuals, including former gangster Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow and former school board member Keith Jackson for murder for hire; but it was the charges against Yee—pay-to-play politics, wire fraud and illegal trafficking of firearms—that many find jarring.
Board of Supervisors President David Chiu read through the 137-page complaint and said the scale of criminal activity is "breathtaking."
"This is exactly what undermines people's confidence in government and is incredibly disturbing," he said.
Yee has had several brushes in the past with the law and there have been allegations of trading political favors for contributions, but Mayor Ed Lee said the allegations are shocking.
I hate seeing someone who spent a good part of the their career in public service to be engaged in this arrest," he said.
"We obviously have a little hurt in that people look up to all of us to do the best we can and we are held to pretty high standards."