A Foster City property developer implicated in San Francisco’s City Hall corruption scandal has been ordered to pay $1 million in fines as part of its sentencing for bribing a city official, the FBI said. 

Z&L Properties, a California-based subsidiary of a Chinese development company, admitted its executives approved or paid bribes to former San Francisco Department of Public Works director Mohammed Nuru, including providing Nuru and another individual with drinks, food, lodging and transportation during a trip to China in 2018.  

According to prosecutors, the payments to Nuru were to influence him to act favorably toward Z&L Properties’ requests for city approvals needed to complete construction of a mixed-use development at 555 Fulton St. in San Francisco.  

On Aug. 17, Z&L pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud and one count of honest services wire fraud.  

Also charged with bribing Nuru was Chinese businessman Zhang Li, 70, who was the owner and controlling member of Z&L. Li was arrested in London in November 2022 and remained there under house arrest for seven months before being extradited to the U.S. to enter into a deferred prosecution agreement, or DPA. A DPA gives a defendant amnesty in exchange for abiding by certain conditions or requirements stipulated by the prosecutor.  

Nuru is currently serving seven years in federal prison for his long-running corruption as head of San Francisco Department of Public Works.  

Katy St. Clair got her start in journalism by working in the classifieds department at the East Bay Express during the height of alt weeklies, then sweet talked her way into becoming staff writer, submissions editor, and music editor. She has been a columnist in the East Bay Express, SF Weekly, and the San Francisco Examiner. Starting in 2015, she begrudgingly scaled the inverted pyramid at dailies such as the Vallejo Times-Herald, The Vacaville Reporter, and the Daily Republic. She has her own independent news site and blog that covers the delightfully dysfunctional town of Vallejo, California, where she also collaborates with the investigative team at Open Vallejo. A passionate advocate for people with developmental disabilities, she serves on both the Board of the Arc of Solano and the Arc of California. She lives in Vallejo.