Granville Homes’ Darius Assemi latest COVID-19 infection tied to county supervisor
Granville Homes President and CEO Darius Assemi is the third person to confirm he tested positive for COVID-19 after a private election night dinner with Fresno politicians.
Late last week, Fresno County Supervisor Steve Brandau announced he tested positive. Earlier Tuesday, Mayor-elect Jerry Dyer said he also tested positive, likely from being exposed to Brandau.
Assemi confirmed his infection on a Facebook Live segment with Brandau and Fresno City Councilmember Mike Karbassi.
Assemi, Brandau, Dyer and Karbassi attended a dinner on election night with Fresno Mayor Lee Brand and Serop Torossian, who works for Kaiser Permanente.
Assemi said the infection was unfortunate because he’s worked hard since March to keep himself and his staff healthy.
“It is very upsetting to me,” he said. “But, it is what it is.”
Assemi experienced a mild cough and mild body aches but no fever, he said.
Brandau: ‘I’ve been called the ‘super-spreader’
County contact tracers estimate Brandau exposed about 45 people between the Board of Supervisors meeting on the morning of Nov. 3 and the election night dinner. So far, six or seven have tested positive with COVID-19, he said.
“A lot of my former colleagues at City Hall have made a lot of jokes at my expense,” Brandau said. “I’ve been called the ‘super spreader,’ the ‘supervisor super spreader’ and the names go on and on.”
In the Facebook segment, Brandau apologized for exposing and infecting Assemi and Dyer, saying he didn’t exercise an “abundance of caution” as public health officials advise.
“So that’s where I have to apologize to you and Mayor-elect Dyer,” Brandau told Assemi. “I feel real bad about that.”