State Sen. Leland Yee, called "one of the most powerful Democratic politicians in California," was arrested Wednesday morning in a major series of federal raids in the Bay Area targeting corruption and gang activity, CBS San Francisco reports.
Yee is a candidate for California Secretary of State:
Federal agents arrested Lee at his home in San Francisco Wednesday morning and he was driven to the federal courthouse while his offices in Sacramento were raided.
Also arrested in the raid was 54-year-old Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow, a former Chinatown gangster who currently heads the Chee Kung Tong masonic organization in San Francisco commonly referred to as the Chinese Freemasons. Agents Wednesday also raided a San Francisco Chinatown building at 36 Spofford St. which houses the Chee Kong Tong.
The charges against Yee include conspiracy to deal firearms without a license, conspiracy to illegally transport firearms, six counts of a scheme to defraud citizens on his services, and wire fraud. Lee was released on a $500,000 unsecured bond and will return to court Monday, March 31st to revisit the terms of his release.
A total of 26 people were arrested on a variety of charges, including murder-for-hire, drug trafficking and gun running, according to the federal criminal complaint.
The federal complaint was filed March 24 and unsealed Wednesday alleges Sen. Yee was engaged in soliciting illegal campaign donations in exchange for political favors and was involved in a conspiracy to traffic firearms from Russia.