Jimmy Meng
Member of the New York State Assembly
from the 22nd district
In office
January 1, 2005 – December 31, 2006
Preceded byBarry Grodenchik
Succeeded byEllen Young
Personal details
Born1944 (age 79–80)
Shandong, Republic of China
Political partyDemocratic
Children3, including Grace

Jimmy Kuang Zui Meng (Chinese: 孟廣瑞; pinyin: Mèng Guǎngruì, born 1944) is a Chinese-Taiwanese American former politician, who served as a member of the New York State Assembly. A Democrat,[1] Meng represented the 22nd Assembly District in Flushing, Queens from 2005 to 2006. He is the first Asian American to have served in the New York State Legislature. Meng pleaded guilty to wire fraud in 2013.

Background and family

Meng's ancestral home was in Shandong Province, China. His father moved to Taiwan due to the Communist Party's takeover of Mainland China. After moving to the United States from Taiwan in 1975,[2] Meng began a successful timber business. Following years of business activity, he became the president of the Flushing Chinese Business Association (FCBA).

Meng is the father of U.S. Representative Grace Meng.[3]

Political career

Meng ran for New York State Assembly in 2002 in the 22nd Assembly District in Flushing, but was defeated by Barry Grodenchik.[4] In 2004, Meng ran for Assembly again. This time, he ousted Grodenchik in the Democratic primary.[5] Running on the Democratic, Independence, and Conservative lines, Meng defeated Republican candidate Meilin Tan, Grodenchik (running on the Working Families Party line), and Green candidate Evergreen Chou in the general election.[6][7]

Meng served in the Assembly in 2005 and 2006.[1] He stated that he would not seek re-election in 2006 due to health concerns.[8] He expressed a desire for more Asian Americans and other minorities to run for office.[9] Meng was succeeded by another Asian American, Ellen Young.[10] In turn, Young lost the September 9, 2008 Democratic primary to Jimmy Meng's daughter, Grace Meng.[11] Grace Meng won the 2008 general election in Assembly District 22[12] and went on to become a member of Congress.[13]

Prosecution and guilty plea

Meng was arrested on federal charges on July 25, 2012.[14] On November 14, 2012, he pleaded guilty to wire fraud for soliciting an $80,000 cash bribe (concealed in a fruit basket)[15] and falsely stating that he would use the funds to bribe Manhattan prosecutors to obtain a reduced sentence for a defendant. The government found no evidence that Meng contacted anyone in the District Attorney's Office on behalf of the defendant; rather, investigators concluded that Meng intended to keep the $80,000 for himself.[16][17] On March 12, 2013, Meng was sentenced to a month in jail, a fine of $30,000, three months of house arrest, and 750 hours of community service for his role in the bribery scheme.[18][19]

References

  1. 1 2 Chen, David W. (November 14, 2012). "Ex-Legislator From Queens Pleads Guilty in Bribe Case (Published 2012)". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ TimesLedger, Q. N. S. "Jimmy Meng vies to be first Asian in Assembly". QNS.com.
  3. ↑ Nir, Sarah Maslin (March 12, 2013). "Ex-Queens Assemblyman Sentenced in Bribery Case (Published 2013)". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Rhoades, Liz. "No Surprises In Elections For Northern Queens Candidates". Queens Chronicle.
  5. ↑ Kilgannon, Corey (September 30, 2004). "Asian Immigrants Become Political Force in Flushing (Published 2004)". The New York Times.
  6. ↑ "First Asian American in the NY State Assembly", ChinaDaily, 05-11-2004. Retrieved on 16-02-2007
  7. ↑ "NYS Board of Elections - 2004 Assembly General Election Results" (PDF). New York State Board of Elections. 4 November 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 August 2012.
  8. ↑ Hicks, Jonathan P. (December 13, 2006). "City Sends 2 Foreign-Born First-Timers to the Assembly (Published 2006)". The New York Times.
  9. ↑ "因健康原因不再竞选连任 孟广瑞不轻言退出政坛". chinaqw.com. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  10. ↑ TimesLedger, Q. N. S. "Ellen Young makes history as temporary Assembly speaker". QNS.com.
  11. ↑ Noah C. Zuss, "Meng Beats Young in Primary for Flushing Seat." "Southeast Queens Press," Sept. 12-18, 2008, p. 11.
  12. ↑ Chen, David W. (June 27, 2012). "A Breakthrough Candidate and Potential Star (Published 2012)". The New York Times.
  13. ↑ "Congresswoman in line for Queens power post has tangled web of real estate assets". Crain's New York Business. August 23, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Former Assemblymember Jimmy Meng, Father Of Grace Meng, Arrested On Bribary [sic] Charge". Queens Gazette. The Service Advertising Group. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  15. ↑ Rubenfeld, Samuel (25 July 2012). "Former Assemblyman Arrested in Fruit Basket Bribery Case". wsj.com. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  16. ↑ "Former Queens Assemblyman Jimmy Meng Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud". fbi.gov. Federal Bureau of Investigation. November 14, 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  17. ↑ Anuta, Joe (November 14, 2012). "Jimmy Meng pleads guilty in wire fraud case". timesledger.com. Times Ledger (Queens, N.Y.). Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  18. ↑ "Jimmy Meng receives one month sentence for attempting to fix criminal case". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  19. ↑ Nir, Sarah Maslin (March 12, 2013). "Ex-Queens Assemblyman Sentenced in Bribery Case". New York Times. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
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