The previous chief lobbyist for the San Francisco 49ers has testified {that a} Silicon Valley metropolis councilman illegally leaked a confidential report criticizing the group’s political affect, it was reported Friday.
Rahul Chandhok instructed a legal grand jury March 21 that Santa Clara Metropolis Councilmember Anthony Becker digitally despatched him the report — which was made by a civil grand jury — final October, the San Francisco Chronicle reported after reviewing a transcript of his testimony.
Prosecutors accuse Becker of offering the key report back to Chandhok and an area information outlet forward of its official launch after which mendacity to the grand jury about it.
He has pleaded not responsible to 1 felony rely of perjury beneath oath and a misdemeanor rely of willful failure to carry out obligation. He might withstand 4 years in state jail if convicted.
The 49ers play in Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) south of San Francisco. Santa Clara owns the stadium and leases it to the group, and the 2 sides have feuded for years by means of ethics complaints and authorized disputes.
Santa Clara County prosecutors stated the soccer group has bankrolled Becker’s political profession by spending not less than $3.2 million by means of impartial expenditure committees for his 2020 successful Metropolis Council race and a failed mayoral bid final 12 months.
Tthe civil grand jury report, titled “Unsportsmanlike Conduct: Santa Clara Metropolis Council,” alleged that councilmembers frequently voted “in a fashion that’s favorable to the 49ers.”
In his testimony, Chandhok stated Becker despatched him a duplicate of the report 4 days earlier than it was to be made public and a month earlier than the mayoral election, the Chronicle stated.
Chandhok stated he then started working to blunt the influence of the report.
Following information protection of the report, Chandhok attacked it as “a surprising political hatchet job” in an announcement that additionally alleged the civil grand jurors that issued it have been corrupt and publicized the place they lived and worshipped, the Chronicle stated.
“The 49ers are dedicated to being a constructive and contributing member of our neighborhood,” the group stated Friday in an announcement. “Because the transcripts are associated to an ongoing authorized matter, we’re unable to make any additional remark at the moment.”
