FBI reportedly eyed Joe Montana, then dropped probe

Former San Francisco 49er quarterback Joe Montana is seen on Monday, March 30, 2010 in the Club Level of the Millennium Tower in San Francisco, Calif. where he and his wife, Jennifer, have recently moved into a condominium. less Former San Francisco 49er quarterback Joe Montana is seen on Monday, March 30, 2010 in the Club Level of the Millennium Tower in San Francisco, Calif. where he and his wife, Jennifer, have recently moved into a ... more Photo: Russell Yip, The Chronicle Photo: Russell Yip, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close FBI reportedly eyed Joe Montana, then dropped probe 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

The FBI sting operation that snared state Sen. Leland Yee and Chinatown tong leader Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow was snooping around an even bigger Bay Area name - 49ers football legend Joe Montana - but came up empty, according to informed sources.

Montana, the Hall of Fame quarterback who has dabbled in development deals since retiring from football after the 1994 season, was contacted by an undercover FBI operative about an unspecified business proposition during the Yee-Chow investigation, according to one source familiar with the case.

"Nobody has said he did anything wrong," said the source, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.

Fear that Montana's name would bubble up as part of the FBI's corruption probe is among the reasons U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer plans to issue a protective order barring prosecutors and defense attorneys involved in the corruption case from disclosing certain evidence to the public, including wiretaps and recordings, according to sources.

"It's important that people who are innocently involved are not subjected to undue speculation," Breyer said in open court April 17.

Breyer would have known about any sensitive contacts the FBI made during the Yee-Chow investigation, because he was assigned to review law enforcement requests for wiretaps.

The protective order was foremost on the minds of defense lawyers in the Yee-Chow case when, after hearing from Breyer, they huddled in the attorneys' lounge on the second floor of the federal courthouse on Golden Gate Avenue to discuss legal strategy.

Attorneys' chat

It was there that James Brosnahan, attorney for one of the defendants, former San Francisco school board President Keith Jackson, told his colleagues that Montana was among those the government was looking to shield from unfair scrutiny, multiple sources say. Brosnahan is one of the lawyers on the defense team who was negotiating terms of the protective order with federal prosecutors.

"I have nothing to say affirmatively or negatively" about that, Brosnahan said when we contacted him about Montana.

Just why the FBI would take an interest in a retired football great as part of a probe that netted Yee on public-corruption charges and Chow for alleged money laundering is an open question. The FBI itself isn't saying.

"I wouldn't be able to confirm or deny that interaction," said FBI spokesman Peter Lee.

Montana's longtime attorney, Rob Mezzetti, said it was all news to him.

"If the FBI was reaching out to Joe, I would know about it - and nobody has reached out to him," Mezzetti said.

At least no one who identified himself or herself as working for the feds.

If there was an attempt to lure Montana into something illicit, his attorney says, he's not worried.

"We don't take any shortcuts," Mezzetti said.

As we reported last week, the FBI ran a series of stings in addition to the Chow-Yee operation - including using an operative posing as an Atlanta developer looking for business opportunities to contact at least two San Francisco supervisors and two Oakland City Council members.

In his post-football life, Montana has pursued a couple of politically sensitive development deals in the Bay Area - a luxury hotel next to the 49ers' new Santa Clara stadium and a $300 million transit village next to the South Hayward BART Station.

Hotel development

Just within the past two weeks, Montana signed a term sheet with the city of Santa Clara to develop a 200-room hotel, offices and a restaurant bearing his name on 9.5 acres of city land next to Levi's Stadium.

The $400 million Centennial Gateway project would be developed jointly by the Montana Property Group and Lowe Enterprises.

City Councilwoman Lisa Gillmor said the city hopes to have the financial terms for leasing the property worked out within the next 45 days, with a goal of having the hotel open by the time Super Bowl L is held in Santa Clara in February 2016.

Business partner

Montana's business partner on the Santa Clara deal is Kurt Wittek, a developer who also teamed up with the former quarterback on plans to develop the transit village - 12 acres of housing and commercial space next to the South Hayward BART Station.

To help kick-start that project, Montana's and Wittek's JMJ Development LLC was awarded $47 million in state bonds in 2009.

The project, however, has yet to get off the ground, and Montana and Wittek are trying to sell their interest, according to David Rizk, director of Hayward's Development Services Department.

Wittek was convicted of bank fraud by a federal jury in 1992 after he helped a business associate secure an illegal loan to buy a North Carolina savings and loan. He later got part of the case tossed on appeal, and his five-year prison sentence was reduced to probation.