Thursday, February 25, 2016

Leland Yee sentenced to 5 years


The Daily Journal/Associated Press, 2/24/16. "Leland Yee, former Caliofornia state senator, sentenced in racketeering case."

Image result for Leland Yee picture
Leland Yee made some
mistakes. Going away for awhile.
"SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge sentenced former California state senator Leland Yee on Wednesday to five years in prison after he acknowledged in a plea deal that he accepted thousands of dollars in bribes and discussed helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines.

....  Yee's attorneys had called for no more than five years and three months behind bars, saying Yee had a history of public service and his wife was ill. Yee, 67, told the judge before sentencing that he had accepted responsibility for his crimes and wanted to take care of his disabled wife. ... " Breyer ordered him to surrender in 30 days. Yee and his attorney declined comment outside the courtroom.

....  Yee acknowledged accepting $11,000 in exchange for setting up a meeting with another state senator, $10,000 for recommending someone for a grant, and $6,800 for providing a certificate on California State Senate letterhead honoring the Ghee Kung Tong. He also acknowledged that he discussed helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines that were intended to be brought to the U.S. for distribution. ....

.... The probe also snared Raymond 'Shrimp Boy' Chow, a flamboyant leader of a Chinese fraternal organization — the Ghee Kung Tong. ....  Prosecutors say Chow and some other members of the fraternal group engaged in drug trafficking, money laundering and the sale of stolen cigarettes and top-shelf liquors. The case against Chow was largely the work of an undercover FBI agent who posed for years as a foul-mouthed East Coast businessman with mafia ties."  Read more.

Note photograph.  Going away by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images from Huffington Post/Politics, 3/31/14.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

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