Key facts
- Adam Iza, 26, was sentenced to 78 months in prison.
- Iza must pay $23.4 million in restitution.
- The sentence runs concurrently with a 15-year sentence for an attempted Bitcoin robbery.
- Iza defrauded Meta of over $37 million.
- Iza hired off-duty sheriff's deputies to harass individuals.
- Five former deputies have been convicted for their involvement with Iza.
Adam Iza, 26, who referred to himself as 'The Godfather,' has been sentenced to an additional 78 months in prison for defrauding Meta of over $37 million and hiring off-duty Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputies to harass individuals with whom he had disputes. This new sentence will run concurrently with a 15-year term he received last month for an attempted Bitcoin robbery, meaning he will not serve any additional time beyond his existing sentence.
U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson also 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 including conspiracy against rights, wire fraud, and tax evasion, and has been in custody since September 2024.
Between August 2021 and April 2022, Iza employed off-duty deputies as personal security. His plea agreement detailed his conspiracy with these deputies to access confidential law enforcement records and personal data of individuals he was in dispute with, and to use court-authorized search warrants to locate them. He also directed the deputies to intimidate and threaten these individuals.
Prosecutors stated that five former deputies have been convicted for their roles in working for Iza. Among them are Eric Chase Saavedra, 42, a former federal task force officer who established the security company that supplied the deputies, who received a 21-month sentence on September 28. Michael David Coberg, 45, is serving 63 months for assisting in the extortion of a rival and orchestrating a fake drug arrest. Scott Allen Simpkins, 34, was sentenced to 18 months for obstructing an investigation into a $25,000 extortion at Iza's mansion, and David Anthony Rodriguez, 45, received a year for submitting a false search warrant application.
The $37 million fraud against Meta occurred from December 2020. Iza gained access to Meta business manager accounts and their associated lines of credit, subsequently selling this access to advertising companies. Meta clients were charged for advertising they did not purchase, and Meta absorbed the losses by refunding these clients. Approximately $37 million flowed into his companies' accounts between 2020 and 2022. Iza admitted to receiving at least $36,360,844 in gross income through 2023 and causing a tax loss of $13,286,152 to the IRS, without filing any corporate returns. To conceal these activities, he hid his ownership of his crypto trading platform, Zort, had an associate purchase personal items with the funds, and transferred corporate income to cryptocurrency custodians.
Iris Rabaya Au, 37, Iza's former girlfriend, was sentenced on September 21 to 18 months for failing to report over $2.6 million she received from Iza's activities. She was ordered to pay $1,484,343 in restitution and forfeit a collection of luxury vehicles, designer handbags, and three 'Godfather' sculptures, among other assets.