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The FBI launched a sweeping Southern California corruption probe this week, raiding properties tied to three local political figures and a Chinese-language media executive as federal investigators examine possible foreign influence concerns.
Agents executed search warrants involving San Bernardino County Supervisor Curt Hagman, Ontario Councilmember Alan Wapner and attorney Frank Lizarraga, the main targets of the investigation.
James Su, chief executive of Chinese-American media company EDI Media, is a secondary target in the probe.
Federal agents searched homes and offices across Southern California, including locations connected to Hagman, Wapner, Lizarraga and Su.
Investigators also searched EDI Media’s West Covina offices, a Beverly Hills mansion and obtained records connected to Ontario International Airport.
A source close to the investigation characterized it as a public corruption probe with a possible foreign influence component.
The FBI confirmed the addresses where warrants were carried out but the agency has not disclosed the nature of the allegations being investigated.
The search warrant affidavits remain sealed, and federal officials declined to comment on the case.
No arrests have been made.
The raids come as US authorities continue investigating concerns that the Chinese government has sought to cultivate influence among American officials and institutions.
Hagman and Wapner both serve on the Ontario International Airport Authority, with Wapner serving as president.
FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller confirmed that a related search warrant was served at the airport, The Los Angeles Times reported.
Investigators also subpoenaed records from Ontario City Hall.
Lizarraga is a prominent civil litigator, a University of La Verne trustee and a former Ontario planning commissioner.
He previously worked for the Southern California Association of Governments, a regional planning organization representing six counties.
The FBI operation follows the guilty plea of former Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang, who admitted to accusations that she was directed by the Chinese government to promote propaganda in the United States.
Prosecutors alleged Wang helped operate US News Center, a website that portrayed itself as a news source for Chinese Americans while carrying out directives from the Chinese government.
Su’s EDI Media donated $500 to Wang’s campaign on Oct. 10, 2022.
Andrew Cowan, an attorney for Su, said his client is an American citizen who has donated to political campaigns across the political spectrum and does not know why the FBI searched properties connected to him.
Cowan said Su is only familiar with Hagman among the individuals connected to the searches.
EDI Media, which describes itself as the largest Chinese American multimedia company in the United States, registered as a foreign agent in May 2022 after it previously printed the US version of a newspaper considered a “foreign mission” of the Chinese government.
The company operates bilingual digital platforms, radio networks and television channels, and produces a Chinese American film festival.
EDI Media says it produces more than 2,000 hours of programming annually and reaches more than 35 million people worldwide.
Agents also searched a 21,000-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion at 613 N. Canon Drive, FOX 11 reported.
Public records show the property was sold in 2023 for $24.6 million by Kurdish general Mansour Banzani to a Chinese mainland family through two companies, including one registered in Delaware.
The latest FBI activity follows another federal investigation in Lancaster, where agents searched City Hall and the homes of two council members.
Authorities have not revealed details of that investigation.
However, a source who reviewed a warrant said investigators sought communications between city officials and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD, which operates a major bus manufacturing facility in Lancaster.
No arrests have been made.
The investigations have raised concerns among intelligence officials that Beijing has attempted to expand its influence in the United States by building relationships with local elected leaders.
US Rep. Norma Torres (D-Pomona) said she was “deeply troubled by the reports the FBI has executed warrants against elected officials in San Bernardino County. I am awaiting further information, but our community has zero tolerance for any corruption at any level of our government.”
The FBI investigation remains active as federal agents continue examining the allegations behind the sealed warrants.
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