Prosecutors say the officer took $1,000 and sexual services in exchange for protection and insider help.
HAYWARD, CA — A Hayward police officer has been charged with a felony after prosecutors said he took $1,000 and free sexual services to protect an alleged brothel, tip off its operator about police activity and look into rival businesses during a wider vice investigation.
The case matters beyond a single charge because it reaches into questions of public trust, police oversight and how a prostitution probe in San Jose grew into a corruption case in the East Bay. Alameda County prosecutors say Officer Benjamin Yarbrough, 48, used his badge to help a woman they suspect ran brothels while seeking money and sex in return. The criminal case is now moving alongside an internal Hayward Police Department investigation, and city leaders say the officer has been on paid administrative leave since last summer.
According to investigators, the case began taking shape during a San Jose Police Department investigation into prostitution and suspected trafficking tied to illicit massage businesses. A probable cause statement says Yarbrough was in contact with Yanqiong Xiong, a woman authorities suspect operated multiple brothels. Investigators allege that on April 2, 2025, Yarbrough implied he could arrest Xiong and then used that threat to seek $1,000 and access to women working at one of the businesses. In text messages cited by investigators, he reassured Xiong that he was there to help, not shut her down. One message quoted in news reports said, “I don’t bust, I protect and keep safe,” a line prosecutors say showed he was offering protection in exchange for benefits. The allegations did not become public until this week, after Alameda County prosecutors filed a felony bribery charge.
Prosecutors say the alleged arrangement went beyond a one-time payment. They accuse Yarbrough of providing insider information about possible law enforcement activity, acting in ways that helped Xiong’s operation and trying to disrupt competing illicit businesses. News reports citing the probable cause declaration said cellphone evidence linked Yarbrough to Xiong and that investigators recovered messages in which he asked about the women available at the brothel. Xiong also identified him, according to those reports, as the officer who took a red envelope holding 10 $100 bills and received sexual services in return for keeping the business safe from police attention. Authorities have not publicly released all of the evidence underlying those claims, and court records described in local reporting indicate Yarbrough denied receiving money, denied having sex at the brothel, denied knowing Xiong and denied offering protection. It was not immediately clear whether he had entered a plea or retained a defense attorney who had spoken publicly.
The investigation widened after San Jose police carried out enforcement activity in May 2025 at two businesses in San Jose, one on the 300 block of W. Julian Street and another on the 1800 block of Sheri Ann Circle, according to reporting that cited law enforcement records. That operation led to the arrest of Xiong and a man identified as Guijun Zhao on suspicion tied to human trafficking and brothel activity. Investigators then reviewed phones and other evidence and said they found repeated contacts involving Yarbrough. The allegations have drawn added attention because Hayward Police Chief Bryan Matthews said he has a family relationship with Yarbrough. Matthews said that after San Jose investigators alerted Hayward police in late July 2025, he asked Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson to handle the criminal investigation rather than let his own agency lead it. Matthews said that decision was made immediately because of the personal connection and the seriousness of the accusations.
Hayward police said Yarbrough was placed on paid administrative leave in late July 2025 and that two tracks opened at once: a criminal investigation led by the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office and an internal affairs investigation into possible policy violations. Prosecutors have publicly identified one felony count of accepting a bribe. As of Friday, officials had not announced additional charges against Yarbrough, and there was no public indication that this case had produced new criminal counts against other Hayward officers. It also remained unclear whether prosecutors would seek broader public-corruption charges or whether any state or federal agencies would step in with separate cases. The next major step is likely to be Yarbrough’s first court appearances on the bribery charge, followed by motions, evidence disclosure and decisions by Hayward police on discipline. Internal affairs findings often move more slowly than criminal cases, especially when departments wait for court proceedings or prosecutor guidance before making final employment decisions.
The allegations have landed hard in Hayward because they describe a street-level abuse of power in a setting already linked to trafficking fears and hidden criminal economies. Outside official statements, the public record remains limited, but the details released so far paint a blunt picture: a local officer, an alleged brothel operator, text messages that investigators say promised protection and a vice case that crossed city lines. Matthews said the allegations, if proved, strike at the core of the profession and are not representative of the department’s officers. He also said any employee found to have engaged in criminal conduct would be held accountable under the law and department policy. For now, the strongest public voices in the case are investigators and department leaders. The people who worked at the alleged brothel have not been publicly identified in the charging materials described by reporters, and officials have not publicly detailed whether any workers were treated as possible trafficking victims or witnesses in the corruption case.
The case stood Friday as a pending felony prosecution and an open internal investigation, with the next key milestone expected in court as Alameda County prosecutors move the bribery charge forward and Hayward police continue their administrative review.
Author note: Last updated 2026-03-20.