Adam Iza, a 26-year-old cryptocurrency figure who called himself “The Godfather,” has received a 78-month prison sentence for a scheme involving former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies, more than $37 million in fraud against Meta and tax evasion. He was also ordered to pay $23,402,766 in restitution.
The sentence does not extend the time Iza is expected to spend in prison because it will run concurrently with a 15-year sentence imposed last month in Connecticut for an attempted Bitcoin robbery. Iza has been in custody since September 2024 and pleaded guilty in January 2025 to conspiracy against rights, wire fraud and tax evasion. Decrypt reported the sentencing and the related cases involving the former deputies.
Deputies used in private disputes
From August 2021 through April 2022, Iza hired off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies as personal security. According to the case, he worked with them to obtain confidential law-enforcement records and personal information about people involved in financial and other disputes with him.
The group also sought court-authorized search warrants to locate those individuals. The deputies were then used to intimidate and threaten them, according to details from Iza’s plea agreement. Prosecutors emphasized in a sentencing memorandum that wealth does not provide the right to obtain warrants, arrests, badges or firearms for use in personal conflicts.
Five former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies have now been convicted over work connected to Iza. They include Eric Chase Saavedra, 42, a former federal task-force officer who created the security company that supplied deputies. He received a 21-month sentence on September 28.
Michael David Coberg, 45, is serving 63 months after helping extort one of Iza’s rivals and arranging a fake drug arrest. Scott Allen Simpkins, 34, received 18 months for obstructing an investigation into a $25,000 extortion attempt at Iza’s Bel Air mansion. David Anthony Rodriguez, 45, was sentenced to one year for submitting a false search-warrant application.
How the Meta fraud worked
The fraud involving Meta was separate from the deputy operation. Beginning in December 2020, Iza obtained access to Meta Business Manager accounts and the credit lines linked to those accounts. He then sold that access to advertising companies.
The companies used the accounts to place advertising charges on behalf of Meta clients. Those clients had not authorized or purchased the advertising. After the billing was detected, Meta refunded the affected customers and absorbed the resulting loss.
More than $37 million moved into accounts belonging to Iza’s companies between 2020 and 2022. In his plea, he acknowledged receiving at least $36,360,844 in gross income through 2023. The activity caused an estimated tax loss of $13,286,152 to the Internal Revenue Service, while Iza filed no corporate tax returns.
The case also involved cryptocurrency-related efforts to conceal the money. Iza hid his ownership of Zort, described in the case as his crypto trading platform, arranged for a co-conspirator to purchase personal items with proceeds and transferred corporate income to cryptocurrency custodians. Crypto custodians generally hold or manage digital assets on behalf of customers; in this case, prosecutors said they were used to help conceal income and ownership.
Other convictions and market picture
Iza’s former girlfriend, Iris Rabaya Au, 37, was sentenced to 18 months on September 21. She failed to report more than $2.6 million received through his activities and was ordered to pay $1,484,343 in restitution. She must also forfeit luxury and high-performance vehicles, designer handbags and three sculptures bearing the “Godfather” name, among other assets.
Moneyiar market data at 10:34 a.m. on October 7, 2026, showed Cardano at $0.254338485, down 8.26% over 24 hours but up 2.39% over seven days. Meteora was $0.3129791438, up 1.04% in 24 hours and down 3.40% over seven days. Aethir traded at $0.0067396915, falling 8.20% over 24 hours while gaining 11.52% over the week. Rootstock Infrastructure Framework was $0.0812185215, down 1.91% over 24 hours and 2.46% over seven days.
The sentencing brings another penalty in a case that combined misuse of law-enforcement resources, digital advertising fraud and the concealment of income through cryptocurrency-related channels. Although the 78-month term is concurrent with Iza’s separate 15-year sentence, the restitution order identifies the financial losses the court associated with the conduct.
