Former San Leandro City Council member Bryan Azevedo pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to accept bribes and making false statements to federal investigators. The charges stem from actions taken while he was in office to benefit a modular housing company.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Azevedo, 49, admitted that in the summer of 2023 he traveled to Vietnam on a trip sponsored by a business association controlled by an individual identified as Co-Conspirator 1. The association covered all expenses for the approximately ten-day trip.
After returning from Vietnam, Azevedo agreed with Co-Conspirator 1 and another individual referred to as Co-Conspirator 2 that he would use his position on the city council to advocate for their modular housing company. In exchange, he was promised a percentage of sales if the City of San Leandro purchased units from the company.
To hide these payments, Azevedo was instructed by his co-conspirators to open an LLC and bank account in his wife’s name. He received $2,000 in cash intended for this account. Although the city did not purchase any units from the company, Azevedo took several official steps between August 2023 and June 2024 on behalf of the business. This included voting for an emergency shelter ordinance at a June 17, 2024 city council meeting and advocating for related purchases within city government.
In January 2025, federal agents searched Azevedo’s home and interviewed him. During this interview, he falsely denied receiving cash or knowing about business interests involving Co-Conspirator 1’s family before the city.
The case was announced by United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian; FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani; IRS Criminal Investigation Oakland Field Office Special Agent in Charge Linda Nguyen; and U.S. Postal Inspection Service San Francisco Division Inspector in Charge Stephen M. Sherwood.
Azevedo is scheduled for a status hearing before District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on December 3, 2026.
He faces up to twenty years in prison and a $250,000 fine for honest services fraud and up to five years in prison plus another $250,000 fine for making false statements. Sentencing will follow consideration of federal guidelines and relevant statutes.
Assistant United States Attorneys Abraham Fine, Molly Priedeman, and Lloyd Farnham are prosecuting the case with support staff Kevin Costello and Amala James. The investigation involved collaboration among FBI agents, IRS criminal investigators, and postal inspectors.
