SAN FRANCISCO — Chinatown crime boss Raymond “Shrimp Boy” Chow’s self-spun tale of redemption, persecution and innocence may have made for a good Hollywood yarn. But a federal jury did not buy the script.

Capping a trial that began in November, the jury on Friday found the 56-year-old Chow guilty of all charges in a thick racketeering indictment that included everything from money laundering and illegal booze trafficking to arranging the murders of two San Francisco gang rivals.

For federal prosecutors and the FBI, the conviction marks perhaps the key conquest in one of the most extensive undercover operations in recent Bay Area history — Chow was the prime and original target of a probe, dubbed “Operation Whitesuit,” that ultimately ensared dozens of defendants, including former state Sen. Leland Yee, who has pleaded guilty to racketeering and is awaiting sentencing.

Rejecting Chow’s claims of innocence and reformation, the jury’s verdict all but assures that the controversial Chinatown gang figure will spend the rest of his life in prison, given a rap sheet that dates back to his teen years. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer is set to sentence Chow on March 23.

Meanwhile, the verdict was a bitter loss for Chow and his crusading legal team. J. Tony Serra, the legendary San Francisco defense lawyer who represented Chow, vowed to win an appeal for his client, who was convicted of all charges in the 162-count indictment.

“The defense feels frustrated, agonized and outraged — we feel that we have been stabbed in the back by this jury,” Serra told reporters after the verdict, insisting Chow’s conviction was based on the testimony of “five snitches that no rational human being would believe or extend credibility to.”

The racketeering case against Chow has been the linchpin of the government’s nearly five-year undercover investigation of crime in Chinatown. During the trial, federal prosecutors portrayed Chow as a violent gangster who orchestrated Chinatown’s crime scene for years.

Federal prosecutors, who called Chow a “vicious gangster” in closing remarks to the jury, and the FBI praised the outcome. “This conviction represents a just and final end to Mr. Chow’s long-running and deadly criminal career,” said San Francisco FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.

Shrugging off government claims that he was a Chinatown version of a Mafia don, Chow took the unusual step of testifying, assuring the jury he was a “changed man” who turned away from a life of crime after his last release from federal prison more than a decade ago. He told the jury of his community work, counseling San Francisco youth against turning to crime, and recounted working on a book that he hoped would be turned into a movie about his life.

But prosecutors mocked Chow’s self-described vow to stay clean. In a federal indictment alleging dozens of crimes, prosecutors identified Chow as the leader, or “Dragonhead,” of an Asian organization called the Ghee Kung Tong that law enforcement agents say was involved in controlling Chinatown’s criminal underground from 2009 until his 2014 arrest. The indictment charged Chow with transforming that 100-year-old cultural organization into a racketeering enterprise.

From the start, Serra insisted on Chow’s innocence, telling the jury earlier this week that the government’s case rested on innuendo and shady informants, and he blasted the FBI’s undercover tactics of plying Chow with expensive booze and fancy dinners as they penetrated his organization. Even after Chow’s March 2014 arrest, Serra gathered the media at his office, where “Free Shrimp Boy” T-shirts were distributed.

Asked Friday whether the defense had erred by letting Chow take the stand in his own defense, Serra replied: “When a person is innocent, they want to take the stand — they demand to take the stand.”

Defense lawyers were critical of Breyer, who repeatedly chastised them throughout the trial for what the judge considered improper conduct in front of the jury. Chow’s lawyers say Breyer’s alleged bias will be part of any appeals, although such legal arguments seldom succeed in the appellate courts.

Chow was expressionless as the verdict was read. Serra said outside court his client “was not unnerved” and that he “said we’ll win on the second round, referring to the appellate process.”

The centerpiece of the government’s case was the lead FBI undercover agent who penetrated Chow’s organization for four years. The agent, who posed as an East Coast mafia businessman with the fake name “David Jordan,” testified that Chow knew he was taking money for orchestrating criminal activity, accepting envelopes stuffed with cash despite protests heard on tape of “no, no, no” when they were offered. Chow’s lawyers say the money was foisted on him with no proof he was involved in committing crimes.

Federal prosecutors introduced evidence gleaned from audio and video surveillance of Chow, much of it through Jordan, whose Chinatown probe eventually collided with dozens of defendants, including Yee, who has pleaded guilty to racketeering charges that accused him of accepting bribes in exchange for political favors. Yee fell into the crosshairs of the FBI investigation because of Chow’s ties to San Francisco political consultant Keith Jackson, who also has pleaded guilty to racketeering.

The undercover recordings touched on discussion of the murder of one of Chow’s rivals, Jim Kat Tong, found shot to death with his wife in Mendocino County in 2013. In addition, the indictment charged Chow with arranging the 2006 murder of Allen Leung, his predecessor as head of the Tong organization.

Jurors left the federal courthouse without commenting, but obviously did not accept Chow’s claims that he had nothing to do with the two killings. The jury deliberated for about three days before returning the guilty verdicts.

Howard Mintz covers legal affairs. Contact him at 408-286-0236 or follow him at Twitter.com/hmintz.