Summary
- Adam Iza, 26, has received a 78-month prison sentence along with a restitution order of $23.4 million.
- Five ex-deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department have been found guilty for their involvement with Iza.
- This sentence will run concurrently with a previous 15-year term for an attempted Bitcoin robbery.
Adam Iza, a 26-year-old who referred to himself as "The Godfather" and is currently serving 15 years for an attempted Bitcoin heist, has been sentenced to an additional 78 months in prison. He was convicted for employing off-duty Los Angeles sheriff's deputies to intimidate individuals he had disputes with, as well as for defrauding Meta of over $37 million and attempting to conceal the illicit gains through cryptocurrency custodians to avoid tax obligations.
U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson mandated that Iza pay $23,402,766 in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. Iza had pleaded guilty in January 2025 to charges of conspiracy against rights, wire fraud, and tax evasion, and has been incarcerated since September 2024.
Self-proclaimed ‘Godfather’ sentenced to over 6 years in prison for fraud, tax evasion, and using LASD deputies to torment his opponents https://t.co/e9TCOOnGeI
— US Attorney L.A. (@USAO_LosAngeles) October 5, 2026
This latest sentence runs concurrently with a 15-year term handed down last month for his involvement in a robbery attempt prior to his arrest, meaning it does not extend his overall prison time.
Between August 2021 and April 2022, Iza hired off-duty deputies for personal security. His plea agreement revealed that he conspired with these deputies to access confidential law enforcement records and personal information regarding individuals with whom he had financial disputes. They also obtained court-sanctioned search warrants to locate these individuals and engaged in intimidation tactics against them.
The Department of Justice reported that five former deputies have been convicted for their roles in aiding Iza. This includes Eric Chase Saavedra, 42, a former federal task force officer who established the security firm that provided the deputies, and was sentenced to 21 months on September 28. Michael David Coberg, 45, received a 63-month sentence for assisting in extortion and orchestrating a false drug arrest. Scott Allen Simpkins, 34, was sentenced to 18 months for obstructing an investigation related to a $25,000 extortion at Iza's Bel Air residence, while David Anthony Rodriguez, 45, was sentenced to one year for submitting a false search warrant application.
Prosecutors stated in a sentencing memorandum that wealth cannot be used to procure "warrants, arrests, badges, or firearms for use in private disputes."
The $37 Million Meta Fraud
The fraudulent activities were separate from the other charges. Starting in December 2020, Iza accessed Meta business manager accounts and the associated lines of credit, subsequently selling this access to advertising firms. Clients of Meta were billed for advertisements they did not authorize, and when this was uncovered, Meta refunded the clients and absorbed the resulting losses.
Myriad: How high will Bitcoin go? Click to make your prediction.From 2020 to 2022, approximately $37 million was transferred into his companies' accounts. He confessed to receiving at least $36,360,844 in gross income up to 2023 and causing the IRS a loss of $13,286,152 without filing any corporate tax returns. To obscure these funds, he hid his ownership of Zort, his cryptocurrency trading platform, had an accomplice purchase personal items with the money, and relocated corporate income to cryptocurrency custodians.
Iris Rabaya Au, 37, Iza's former girlfriend, was sentenced to 18 months on September 21 for failing to report over $2.6 million gained from his schemes. She was also ordered to pay $1,484,343 in restitution and to forfeit a collection of luxury vehicles, designer handbags, and three sculptures titled "Godfather," among other assets.