Indicted by a federal grand jury, Sacramento councilman Sean Loloee must resign | Opinion
Now that Sacramento City Councilmember Sean Loloee has been officially indicted by a federal grand jury on fraud, obstruction and other charges, the only possible course of action is for him to resign.
Like, immediately.
Sacramento Mayor Pro Tem Mai Vang already called for Loloee’s resignation on social media late Friday afternoon, hours after The Bee broke the story of Loloee’s indictment.
“The indictment of (Loloee) on numerous serious charges goes against the ethical standards expected of public officials,” Vang wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “These disappointing allegations compromise his ability to effectively represent our city...”The residents of (City Council) District 2 deserves better. I strongly urge Mr. Loloee to do the right thing and uphold the integrity of his office by resigning.”
Vang is right, An emergency meeting is in order among members of the City Council. They must all call on Loloee to get off the council now. Loloee has done enough damage to the city’s reputation and he needs to address his serious legal troubles without further dragging the city into his self-made mess.
Along with the general manager of Loloee’s four Viva Supermarkets, Karla Montoya, Loloee was indicted Friday on 25 counts of defrauding the U.S. Department of Labor, 14 counts of possession of false immigration documents, three counts of falsifying records and three counts of wire fraud, among other charges.
And where was Loloee ordered to stay by the federal judge while awaiting trial? At the Granite Bay home, his wife owns, which the government calls his “primary residence.” The Bee had reported that other people were living in Loloee’s North Sacramento home in several stories. They raised questions of whether Loloee truly lived in his district, as city council members must. Despite this, a city-commissioned investigation determined that he did live in his district, a declaration that is not aging well.
If it had been determined that Loloee lived outside his district, the council could have removed Loloee from office months ago. That he was still a sitting councilman when the federal indictment came down Friday is a black eye for the city.
As reported by The Bee on Friday, federal officials want Loloee to stay at his primary residence in Granite Bay because Montoya lives at Loloee’s North Hagginwood residence and officials don’t want the two suspects to have contact with each other without lawyers present. What a mess.
It’s hard to imagine how Loloee was elected in the first place. A timeline of his legal problems printed in the Bee goes on and on and on.
Federal investigations, lawsuits, federal labor filings, verbal pratfalls, heated words, confrontations with women, and the aforementioned allegations that he didn’t live in his district. It never seemed to stop, but this federal indictment is something else entirely.
As The Bee reported, “If convicted of the most serious charges, Loloee could face up to 20 years in prison.”
Loloee has surrendered his passport to federal authorities. The indictment against him is 26 pages long. He is in serious legal jeopardy and must return to court in early February.
What are you waiting for, sir?
It’s time for the clown show to be over. Loloee needs to resign from the Sacramento City Council now.
This story was originally published December 16, 2023 at 4:00 AM.
