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Southern California supervisor to plead guilty in COVID funds corruption case

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Southern California supervisor to plead guilty in COVID funds corruption case



Andrew Do, now the former the District 1 supervisor for Orange County, is admitting to accepting bribes in order to funnel COVID funds to his daughters

An Orange County, California district supervisor has resigned from his post and agreed to plea guilty to federal corruption charges.

Andrew Do, now the former the District 1 supervisor for Orange County, will plead guilty to a felony federal charge for accepting more than $500,000 dollars in bribes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a news release.

Do accepted bribes to vote in favor of giving more than $10 million in COVID funds to a charity affiliated with one of his daughters, prosecutors said.

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The 62-year-old former supervisor was part of the five-member Orange County Board of Supervisors, which controls a $9 billion annual budget.

Paul Meyer, the attorney representing Do, told USA TODAY on Tuesday that “out of respect for the legal process, no statement is appropriate at this time.

“However, it is appropriate to convey Andrew Do’s sincere apology and deep sadness to his family, to his constituents in District One and to his colleagues,” Meyer said.

What is Do pleading guilty to?

In the plea agreement obtained by USA TODAY, Do is admitting to accepting $500,000 in bribes beginning in 2020 in exchange for voting in favor of sending millions of dollars to the Viet America Society.

“The money he misappropriated and accepted as bribe payments was taken from those most in need – older adults and disabled residents. Our community deserved much better,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement.

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Officials also said that the charity used the funds from the county to pay a business identified in court records as “Company #1.” The company received more than $3 million in payments over an almost three-year period.

After the charity increased the payments to “Company #1” to $108,000 a month, the unnamed company then began paying Rhiannon Do, the supervisor’s daughter, $8,000 a month, prosecutors say.

By February of this year, officials say she had already been paid $224,000. Moreover, Andrew Do in his plea agreement admitted that the unnamed company transferred more than $380,000 to an escrow company that his daughter used to purchase a home in Tustin, California.

Do also admitted to receiving other bribes disguised as payments to other companies that were then funneled to his other daughters.

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“No one is above the law in Orange County and these charges should serve as a powerful warning to elected officials everywhere that actions have consequences and justice will be swift and it will be decisive,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a statement.

Once Do enters his plea, he could face a maximum of five years in federal prison.

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.



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Heavy rain, high tides cause flooding along stretch of Northern California

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Heavy rain, high tides cause flooding along stretch of Northern California


CORTE MADERA, Calif. (AP) — Heavy rain and high tides believed to be the most severe in two decades caused flooding in parts of Northern California on Saturday, prompting road closures and rescues of residents trapped in their cars.

Roadways through a 15-mile (24-kilometer) stretch from the Sausalito area to San Rafael were flooded after a downpour coincided with record-breaking “ King Tides,” Marin County Sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Dobbins said.

No injuries were reported but authorities were called to assist when cars got stuck in floodwater as high as three and four feet (1.1 and 1.2 meters), he said.

“There is a lot of water in the roadways,” Dobbins said, adding the tides were reportedly the highest in more than two decades. “Along with heavy rains, it just created the perfect storm for flooding on the streets.”

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Authorities in the communities near San Francisco asked residents to stay home wherever possible until waters recede. Some residents kayaked along what normally would be city streets. Others waded out in water that passed their knees.

A flood warning was in place for the San Francisco area until 2 p.m. Saturday and an advisory until 2 p.m. Sunday, according to the National Weather Service in San Francisco.

King Tides occur when the sun, moon and Earth are in alignment and the moon is in its closest position to the Earth, creating a stronger gravitational pull.





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UPDATE: Crash at California/Dakota

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UPDATE: Crash at California/Dakota


10:06 PM: Police are arriving at the scene of a two-vehicle crash reported at California/Dakota, with at least two people hurt.

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11:06 PM: Police have just reopened the street. We went to the scene after a report that one vehicle had ended up on the lawn of a church – First Lutheran Church of West Seattle (WSB sponsor) – is on the southwest corner – but all we could see was one vehicle on the sidewalk. We’re following up with SFD regarding the people who were hurt.





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Southern California’s wild weather is not over. Wind gusts of up to 65 mph predicted

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Southern California’s wild weather is not over. Wind gusts of up to 65 mph predicted


Last week’s rain won’t be the end of Southern California’s wild weather as strong wind gusts are forecast through the area until Tuesday.

Gusts of up to 65 mph are expected in mountains and valleys throughout the region, with the National Weather Service warning that power outages were possible and that residents should keep an eye out for downed trees and power lines.

“Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles,” according to an alert issued by the National Weather Service.

The recent storms that drenched Southern California and soaked the soil could also “increase the likelihood of damage” caused by downed trees and power lines, the agency noted.

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The National Weather Service issued the advisory Sunday, warning that the western Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Susana Mountains, San Gabriel Mountains and the Interstate 5 and Highway 14 corridors could see strong winds starting Sunday evening, lasting until Monday afternoon.

Winds between 20 to 30 mph are expected in those areas until Sunday evening. Wind speeds are then predicted to pick up until Monday afternoon, with northeast winds of up to 40 mph and gusts of up to 65 mph.

A similar alert for strong gusts was issued by the weather service for the San Bernardino and Riverside County mountain and valley regions, as well as the Santa Ana Mountains, where strong winds could linger until Tuesday afternoon.

Northeast winds with speeds of up to 30 mph are expected to hit the area starting this evening, with gusts of up to 60 mph.

The high wind alerts come after the region was drenched for days, causing debris flows that washed through homes in Wrightwood. At least three people were killed in storm-related deaths, including a man in San Diego who was struck by a falling tree. In Boyle Heights, a rare tornado touched down on Christmas morning.

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More rain is expected this week, including the possibility of rain on New Year’s Day.



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