Former California Sen. Leland Yee was sentenced to five years in prison on Wednesday for accepting bribes and trafficking in arms.
Throughout Yee’s political career, he was a staunch gun control advocate, the Washington Post reported.
Yee was arrested for his role in an FBI sting operation that was investigating organized crime in San Francisco’s Chinatown, where he was recorded promising votes and guns to an undercover agent.
Yee had received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions in exchange for political favors.
Yee pleaded guilty in 2017 to avoid a trial.
In court, Yee begged mercy from U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer.
He said: “I hope that in your sentencing of me, you will look at my entire life and not just these crimes I have committed. In the 67 years of my life, I have devoted much of it to the work of the community, to people here in San Francisco and in the state of California.”
Two years before Yee was arrested, he told CBS: “It is extremely important that individuals in the state of California do not own assault weapons. I mean that is just so crystal clear — there is no debate, no discussion.”
