Ex-S.F. Official Boas Pleads Guilty on Sex Counts

Roger Boas, a failed mayoral candidate who was city administrator under two mayors for a decade, pleaded guilty Thursday to charges stemming from having sex with teen-age girls at a brothel.

Superior Court Judge Timothy Reardon accepted the surprise plea and set Nov. 17 for sentencing on seven counts of statutory rape. Another 12 counts were dropped in return for the guilty plea, which reportedly allows Boas to avoid prison.

Boas issued a brief statement late Thursday expressing “deep remorse.”

The original charges, contained in a secret grand jury indictment handed down Oct. 3, covered a 2 1/2-year period starting in November, 1985, including his final 15 months as San Francisco’s chief administrative officer and his 1987 mayoral campaign. He placed a close third in last year’s primary.

The indictment grew out of a 16-month police investigation during which five prostitutes testified that they had sex with Boas.

Investigative reports indicated that police had extensive corroborating evidence of the charges that included telephone records.

A campaign poster for Boas on Polk Street, a haven for runaways, was spotted by one of the teen prostitutes and eventually led to his indictment, according to police reports.

A city criminal grand jury handed down the 86-count indictment of Boas and 13 others. Eight of the defendants were alleged customers and the others were indicted for running the operation at 16th and Church streets.