Homeland Security Returning Stockton Mayor's Laptops, Cell Phone After SFO Detainment
STOCKTON (CBS/AP) — The mayor of a Bay Area city whose two laptops and cellphone were seized by federal investigators says the Department of Homeland Security has agreed to return the electronics, his attorney said Wednesday.
Homeland Security officials seized the laptops and cellphone last month from Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva at San Francisco International Airport after he got off a flight from China. Silva said he was given no explanation for the search and seizure.
Silva said he was returning from a weeklong trip with other San Francisco Bay Area mayors sponsored by China Silicon Valley, a nonprofit organization that promotes investment between China and Silicon Valley.
Mark Reichel, Silva's attorney, said Homeland Security agreed to return the items in a timely manner. He said he doesn't know why his client is being investigated by the federal government.
Reichel said that as a result of his agreement, a federal court hearing scheduled for next week in Sacramento seeking to recover the electronics has been dismissed.
The Department of Justice refused to confirm the agreement or comment on the case. Court documents show it allowed the hearing's dismissal.
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