Star witness gives vague answers in bribery trial of former Oakland mayor

In tense exchanges with a defense attorney, Mario Juarez testified he made criminal deals with former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and others.OAKLAND, Calif. (CN) — Amid frequent interruptions by attorneys, jurors on Friday grappled with an FBI cooperator’s cross-examination in a high-profile bribery case involving a former Oakland mayor and three co-defendants.Mario Juarez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and is cooperating with prosecutors in hopes of a lesser sentence. He resumed his testimony under cross-examination.In heated back-and-forth exchanges with defense attorney Edward Swanson, Juarez often avoided answering questions directly.He occasionally provided forthright answers, saying he kept money he shouldn’t have in past real estate dealings and “ripped off” several associates, including a printer who created negative attack mailers to help get then-Oakland City Council member Sheng Thao elected as mayor in 2022.“I bribed Mayor Sheng Thao,” Juarez said under oath. “We all committed bribery.”Juarez and two defendants — David and Andy Duong — founded the company Evolutionary Homes, which ostensibly produced low-cost container homes.Prosecutors say the trio agreed to help bankroll Thao’s election in exchange for lucrative city contracts to build homes for unhoused people. They say the group wanted to trade “bribes for the promise of future influence.”Juarez testified that Thao’s romantic partner Andre Jones was to receive $10,000 for every house sold to the city. With a possible contract for 300 homes, Jones and Thao would have received $3 million in kickbacks for the full contract.Thao, Jones and David and Andy Duong were indicted in January 2025, charged with crimes including conspiracy, bribery, fraud and making a false statement to a government official.All four co-defendants have pleaded not guilty. Thao faces a maximum sentence of 95 years in prison if convicted on all charges.In court on Friday, Juarez wore a black blazer, a white collared shirt and blue jeans.Over five hours of questioning, he deflected many of Swanson’s questions, especially those about his early statements to law enforcement.Swanson tried to raise doubts about Juarez’s credibility. He questioned why Juarez — in one of his first meetings with the FBI on June 24, 2026 — didn’t mention a “giant curveball."The curveball was an meeting on Oct. 7, 2022, where Juarez claims Thao solicited a $300,000 bribe to be paid to Jones.Swanson tried to get Juarez to admit he characterized the solicitation to the Department of Justice as first happening a few days later, at an Oakland restaurant during a fundraiser for Thao’s campaign.Juarez parried.“You want to hear that it was the first time, but that’s not what happened,” he answered Swanson. He did not explain why he didn’t mention the Oct. 7 meeting to the department.Chief U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, a Barack Obama appointee, frequently had to stop Juarez’s testimony, reminding him that he needed to answer just “yes” or “no” to Swanson’s questions.Swanson spent a large portion of his questioning asking about an email exchange that Juarez forwarded to Cecilia Mendez, his a former Evolutionary Homes employee and his former partner. The emails — discussions with his lawyers about proposals for his plea agreement — include possible scenarios where he would not plead guilty to any charge or would only cooperate if prosecutors agreed to convict Thao, Jones and several members of the Duong family.“Do you think I am playing with fire?” Juarez asked Mendez about the proposals.U.S. Assistant Attorney Abraham Fine objected frequently, saying Swanson was being argumentative or that Juarez had already answered a question.Swanson went through Juarez’s Apple Notes, invoices and text messages with the Duongs and Thao. He asked why there was no documentation about the $10,000 per unit agreement with Jones.“Most illegal agreements, we don’t want to put it in writing," Juarez said. “It’s a bad thing.”Juarez’s cross-examination continues Monday at the Ronald V. Dellums Courthouse in Oakland.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads