Mayor's Alleged Perjury Part of Mirkarimi Case

What did the San Francisco mayor know -- and when did he know it?

The "laborious inquest" into suspended Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi's removal from office will now expand to examine allegations that Mayor Ed Lee lied under oath, according to the San Francisco Examiner.

Lee testified last week at an Ethics Commission hearing that he had no discussions with sitting elected officials regarding the future of Mirkarimi, the elected sheriff whom Lee suspended from office for grabbing the arm of his wife during an argument. Lee then moved to permanently remove Mirkarimi from office, a procedure that involves Ethics, and later, the Board of Supervisors.

Attorneys for Mirkarimi asked Lee if he'd discussed removal proceedings with any members of the Board of Supervisors. Lee said no -- but later, Debra Walker, a city commissioner, said that Supervisor Christina Olague said that Lee had asked her about the issue.

On Wednesday, the plot thickened further when former Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin told the newspaper that he'd been instructed to offer Mirkarimi a city job if he'd agree to resign from office. The offer reportedly came from Lee, via Walter Wong, a construction magnate and powerful Chinatown figure.

Wong said he was acting on behalf of the mayor's office, according to Peskin.

A spokeswoman for Lee said that the mayor testified "absolutely truthfully."

Shepard Kopp, an attorney for Mirkarimi, said that he plans to subpoena anyone who may testify otherwise.