MIL Security Engine-1

Source: US FBI

SAN DIEGO – Rodolfo Benjamin Silva, a prolific cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl trafficker who called himself the “King of Coke,” was sentenced in federal court today to 17.5 years in prison for distributing large quantities of illicit drugs in the U.S. and for facilitating the movement of cartel hitmen into the United States.

At today’s hearing, prosecutors described Silva as a long-time San Diego-based drug distributor who worked directly with Mexican counterparts to receive narcotic shipments from Mexico. According to his plea agreement, in October 2022, Silva provided a drug courier with 114 pounds of methamphetamine and a kilogram of fentanyl for transport to Indianapolis, but it was interdicted in Oklahoma.

Silva also admitted in his plea agreement to threatening, directing or using violence as part of his drug trafficking activities. Prosecutors told the court today that Silva assisted in bringing assassins known as “sicarios” from Mexico into the San Diego area for cartel enforcement operations. On one occasion, Silva hired a sicario from Mexico to come to San Diego where that individual attempted to fatally shoot one of Silva’s rivals, prosecutors said.

This investigation was led by FBI and DEA in San Diego with integral assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Indiana and FBI’s Indianapolis Field Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Goff.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.

DEFENDANT                                               Case Number 23CR02513-WQH                            

Rodolfo Benjamin Silva, aka “Rudy”            Age: 44                       San Diego, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine – Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 841(a)(1) and 846

Maximum penalty: Mandatory minimum 10 years and up to life in prison, $10 million fine

INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Drug Enforcement Administration

Source: US FBI

SAN DIEGO – Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta, who was convicted by a federal jury in October 2024 of securities fraud, bank fraud and money laundering in connection with a $35 million swindle that left his own elderly uncle bankrupt, was sentenced in federal court today to 235 months in custody. Bhakta was convicted of all 25 charges after a two-week trial.

The evidence at trial showed Bhakta solicited investors in his companies Fusion Hotel Management LLC and Fusion Hospitality Corporation (collectively “Fusion”). Between at least 2016 and up to 2021, Bhakta falsely told investors that Fusion routinely acquired discounted blocks of hotel rooms from Hilton, which Fusion then sold to United Airlines at a higher price for a significant profit.

To support these lies, Bhakta provided fabricated bank statements, fake contracts, and profit and loss statements purporting to show millions in revenue and profit. Instead of buying blocks of hotel rooms with investors’ funds, however, Bhakta used the money he obtained from investors for gambling, to make Ponzi-style payments to other investors, and to pay for Bhakta’s personal expenses, including luxury vehicles.

According to court documents, Bhakta targeted friends, family members and close acquittances during the multi-year fraud scheme. Among the victims was Bhakta’s uncle, who was swindled out of $4.5 million, and who testified during the trial that he came to the U.S. as an immigrant with a suitcase and $8 in his pocket, and because of the defendant, he “lost everything he had worked for in 57 years in America. Everything.”

Bhakta’s other victims included a childhood friend who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars; his former boss and his wife; a friend of his family who lost $1.6 million; a high school classmate and her father who together lost more than $800,000; and an 88-year-old investor who lost $50,000.

During the trial, prosecutors introduced evidence that Bhakta was flown to Las Vegas on the Wynn Las Vegas private jet. And in just one 7.5-hour gambling binge in 2018, Bhakta lost $1 million at the casino. Through a trove of casino records, prosecutors demonstrated how Bhakta repeatedly took investors’ money straight to casinos and gambled (and lost) millions of investor money.

“I haven’t seen a case quite like this,” said U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino, who found Bhakta’s conduct “could not have been more deliberate [and] could not have been more calculated.”  In pronouncing the 235-month prison sentence, Judge Sammartino noted Bhakta’s only apparent motive was “greed and gambling,” his victims included his own friends and relatives, and he showed “nothing resembling remorse” for his criminal conduct that spanned years.

“This defendant didn’t just betray investors—he callously swindled his own family and closest friends, leaving his elderly uncle bankrupt,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew Haden. “Instead of safeguarding their hard-earned money, he funneled millions straight to casinos, gambling away their futures along with his own. His lies, deceit, and reckless greed have finally caught up to him. Today’s sentence makes clear that those who gamble with other people’s trust and livelihoods will face the consequences.”

“Denny Bhakta orchestrated an elaborate investment fraud scheme that caused extensive financial harm to unsuspecting victims, including close family and friends, all for his own personal gain,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy.  “Today’s sentence holds him accountable for his greed and deceitful conduct, bringing justice to the victims he exploited.”

According to the government’s sentencing materials, in 2020, Bhakta doubled down on the fraud. Through the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), Bhakta applied for 18 separate PPP loans totaling $4.4 million. To fraudulently obtain the PPP loans, Bhakta created fake W-2 and other IRS documents and used the names and personally identifying information of his victim-investors to claim them as employees of Fusion and other entities under Bhakta’s control.  Bhakta used the more than $4.4 million he received in PPP loans to keep the Ponzi scheme going and to continue gambling and losing money at casinos.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Mokhtari and Eric Olah.

DEFENDANTS                                             Case Number 21cr3352-JLS                            

Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta                             Age: 42                                   San Diego, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Securities Fraud—Title 15, U.S.C. §§ 78j(b), 78ff; Title 17, C.F.R. § 240.10b-5

Maximum penalty:  Twenty years in prison and $5,000,000 fine

Bank Fraud—Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1344(2)

Maximum penalty:  Thirty years in prison and $1 million fine

Money Laundering– Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1957

Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and fine twice the amount of the criminally derived property involved in the transaction

INVESTIGATING AGENCY

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Source: US FBI

SAN DIEGO – Odyssey Carrillo, a member of the Emerald Hills Bloods gang, was sentenced in federal court today to 168 months in prison for his role in a racketeering conspiracy involving coordinated violent crimes by street gangs.

Carrillo is the ninth and final member of the conspiracy to be sentenced. He pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Conduct Enterprise Affairs Through a Pattern of Racketeering Activity and Hobbs Act Robbery. According to court documents, the crimes committed by the enterprise included armed robbery, sex trafficking, prostitution, violence and other profit-driven illegal activities.

The defendants were charged with racketeering conspiracy – the statute’s original inspiration was to combat organized-crime syndicates and mobsters. But as criminal street gangs have become more sophisticated and prolific in their illicit business pursuits, this statute has become an effective tool to address all aspects of coordinated violent criminal conduct.

Previously sentenced defendants include Jerome Brunson, Cedric Jordan, Stephen Nathaniel Calhoun, Jr., Carl Moore, Maurice Johnson, Dajay Leon Scott, Taashawn Henderson and Sergio Valentin Louden.

In his plea agreement, Carrillo admitted that he joined the conspiracy that engaged in a pattern of racketeering activity that included robbery, prostitution and sex trafficking. Carrillo further admitted to committing racketeering activity himself, including two specific armed robberies.

Carrillo, Calhoun and Moore admitted to participating in the January 19, 2019, armed robbery of San Carlos Jewelers in San Diego and the February 11, 2019, armed robbery of the Bert Levi Family Jewelers in San Diego.

Calhoun also admitted to robbing the Medicine Shoppe in San Diego by gunpoint on May 20, 2019. Calhoun and Moore both admitted to being Lincoln Park Bloods (LPK) gang members; Carrillo admitted to being an Emerald Hills gang member, a Bloods-aligned street gang that often works cooperatively with LPK. Calhoun and Moore were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Cynthia Bashant to 176 months and 105 months in custody, respectively.

According to their plea agreements, in furtherance of the racketeering conspiracy, Jerome Brunson admitted to being an LPK member who participated in the November 19, 2019, armed robbery of a Jared’s jewelry store in National City. Judge Bashant sentenced Brunson to 57 months in custody. Dajay Scott and Sergio Louden admitted to being LPK members who robbed numerous women of their purses outside nail salons in January 2020. Judge Bashant sentenced Scott and Louden to 48 months and 72 months in custody, respectively.

Cedric Jordan, Maurice Johnson, and Taashawn Henderson admitted to being LPK members who, during the course and in furtherance of the conspiracy, engaged in sex offenses related to sex trafficking and transportation for purposes of prostitution. Judge Bashant sentenced Jordan, Johnson, and Henderson to 63 months, 60 months, and 58 months in custody, respectively.

“Every member of our community is put at risk when criminal street gangs engage in armed robberies, sex trafficking, and other violent criminal acts,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew Haden. “This case is the result of outstanding teamwork and collaboration between our local and federal law enforcement partners. We will continue to hold these violent groups accountable, using the RICO tools at our disposal, to bring justice to crime victims and to make our community safer.”

“Today’s sentencing reflects the hard work, determination, and collaboration of multiple agencies to dismantle an organized crime conspiracy,” said FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy. “The violent crime and gang threats are too diverse, too dangerous, and too all-encompassing for any of us to tackle alone. FBI will continue to work with our partners to disrupt violent crime, human traffickers, and violent gangs whose criminal acts devastate our communities.”

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mario J. Peia, Katherine E. A. McGrath, and Matthew Brehm.

DEFENDANTS                                             Case Number 21cr2909-BAS                           

Jerome Brunson                                              Age: 27                                   San Diego, CA

Cedric Jordan                                                  Age: 36                                   San Diego, CA

Stephen Nathaniel Calhoun, Jr.                      Age: 24                                   San Diego, CA

Carl Moore                                                      Age: 34                                   San Diego, CA

Maurice Johnson                                             Age: 34                                   San Diego, CA

Dajay Leon Scott                                            Age: 26                                   San Diego, CA

Taashawn Henderson                                      Age: 29                                   San Diego, CA

Sergio Valentin Louden                                  Age: 36                                   San Diego, CA

Odyssey Carrillo                                             Age: 23                                   San Diego, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Conspiracy to Conduct Enterprise Affairs Through a Pattern of Racketeering Activity – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1962(d)

Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison and $250,000 fine

Interference with Commerce by Robbery – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1951

Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison and $250,000 fine

Brandishing a Firearm During and In Relation to a Crime of Violence – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 924(c)

Maximum penalty: Life in prison with a seven-year mandatory minimum and $250,000 fine

INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

San Diego Police Department

San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force

San Diego County Sheriff’s Department

National City Police Department

San Diego County District Attorney’s Office

*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Source: US FBI

Kevin Leslie Gipson, 58, of Oroville, pleaded guilty today to attempted coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith announced.

According to court documents, in July 2024 Gipson communicated with an individual he believed to be the father of a 10-year-old girl, but who was in fact an undercover officer. Gipson communicated his desire to perform sex acts on the child and planned to meet the undercover officer and child at a hotel room to do so. Gipson purchased various sex items in preparation for the meeting and bought a stuffed animal with the intent to provide the stuffed animal to the child. When Gipson approached the undercover officer with the stuffed animal, he was arrested by law enforcement officers.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office, the Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force/Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Delaney is prosecuting the case.

Gipson is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley on Feb. 5, 2026. Gipson faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.

Source: US FBI

Today, FBI Sacramento Field Office Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel marks the FBI’s commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. “The FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitive’s List has helped the media and public be informed and engaged in the effort to locate and apprehend some of our nation’s most dangerous criminals,” said Patel. “We are grateful to all who have provided tips. Their commitment to justice and community safety is to be commended.”

The FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives initiative is designed to publicize particularly dangerous fugitives and enlist the public to assist the FBI in locating them. It is an extremely important law enforcement tool, and media and public involvement is crucial to its success. At a minimum, a reward of up to $250,000 is offered by the FBI for information that leads directly to the arrest of a Ten Most Wanted Fugitive.

The Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list was borne from a newspaper story in 1949. A reporter for the International News Service asked the FBI for the names and descriptions of the “toughest guys” the FBI would like to capture. The story generated so much positive publicity that on March 14, 1950, former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover implemented the “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” program. Since the list’s inception, 496 individuals wanted by the FBI have been apprehended or located.

Since March 14, 1950, eighteen fugitives from the 34-county region the FBI Sacramento Field Office serves have been added to the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, including escaped federal prisoners, burglars, murderers, and bank robbers.

• Howard Jay Barnard was the first fugitive from the region to be added to the list on April 12, 1963. The escapee was apprehended in Sacramento on April 6, 1964, when fleeing a robbery.
• Glen Stewart Godwin, an escapee, was added to the list on December 7, 1996. He was removed from the list due to the fact he no longer met with FBI Top Ten Fugitives list criteria but remains wanted by the FBI.
• Nikolay Soltys, who was wanted for fleeing to avoid prosecution for the murder of six of his family members in Sacramento, was the last fugitive placed on the list on August 23, 2001. He was apprehended in Citrus Heights on August 30, 2001.

Information about the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list can be found on the www.fbi.gov/wanted/topten; @FBIMostWanted on X, Facebook and Instagram; the FBI’s YouTube page; on the FBI Wanted mobile app (available for download on Apple and Android devices); and featured on episodes of Inside the FBI podcast series. As technology continues to advance and innovative applications surface, the FBI will continue to utilize all the tools available to publicize fugitives and engage the public in helping to locate them.

Source: US FBI

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Cedar Sky Montgomery, of Calaveras County, pleaded guilty today to three counts of interstate communication of threats of violence, Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith announced.

According to court documents, Montgomery used a cellphone and the internet to make threats to multiple different victims. In one instance, he threatened to kill a victim and have the victim “watch members of your family hanging from trees while your famil[y’]s Houses Burn to ground … .” On another occasion, Montgomery sent text and multimedia messages that threatened to kill a second victim and that victim’s brother, specifically threatening to “kill as many members of your family as I can find!”  Montgomery also told the second victim that he would cut the victim’s fingers and hands “off your physical body.”  With a third victim, Montgomery sent threatening voicemail messages saying, “the bomb maker is going to kill everybody in your [expletive] family, I’m going to burn your property down, I’m going to slit your [expletive] throat and I’m going to kill everybody in your family.”   

Additionally, from late November 2023 through early January 2024, Montgomery used his mobile phone to repeatedly call and send hundreds of unwanted text and multimedia messages to a fourth victim’s mobile phone.  Montgomery sent obscene cartoons and photos and told the victim he was trying to find the victim and threatening to kill the victim’s romantic partner.  Montgomery similarly sent hundreds of unwanted messages to a victim, along with angry voicemails and images of a man’s throat being sliced by a sharp blade, combined with claims that Montgomery would find the victim and cut the victim into pieces. 

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Ripon Resident Agency of the Sacramento Field Office, the Los Angeles Field Office, and the Washington Field Office, with assistance from the United States Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adrian T. Kinsella and Christina McCall are prosecuting the case.

Montgomery is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on June 9, 2025. He faces a maximum statutory sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 per count of conviction, and the parties agree to recommend a total sentence of 30 months in prison. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

Source: US FBI

LOS ANGELES—A federal grand jury returned an indictment Monday charging four individuals for their alleged involvement in an armed robbery spree in Oxnard, California.

The following defendants are charged with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and interference with commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act):

• Erasmo Jose Corral, 19, of Oxnard;
• Wendy Xitlali Gutierrez, 21 , of Oxnard
• Sylvia Martinez, 51 , of Oxnard and
• Ramon Olvera, 29, of Oxnard

According to the indictment, on January 4, 2025, Corral, Gutierrez, Martinez, and Olvera allegedly robbed a The Home Depot store in Oxnard, California and three days later, robbed a Walmart. According to court documents, on both occasions, Corral brandished a handgun and aimed it at store employees, as he and his co-conspirators fled with stolen items.

Following the Walmart robbery on January 7, officers with the Oxnard Police Department located the suspects and conducted a traffic stop, resulting in the arrest of Corral and Gutierrez. During the search, officers reportedly discovered a loaded handgun in the vehicle that matched the handgun allegedly used in the robberies. Corral is not legally permitted to possess a firearm and ammunition because he was previously convicted of a felony and was on probation at the time of his arrest. Martinez and Olvera were arrested by officers with the Oxnard Police Department on March 29th and they were brought into federal custody yesterday.

Corral was also charged with one count for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.

If convicted, Corral, Gutierrez, Martinez, and Olvera face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each Hobbs Act robbery count. Corral faces additional seven-year consecutive sentences for allegedly brandishing a firearm during each robbery, a statutory maximum of 15 years for felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and a statutory maximum 40 years for possession with intent to distribute at least 5 grams of methamphetamine. All defendants in this case are expected to remain in custody pending trial.

The investigation is being conducted by the Ventura County Violent Crime Task Force, which includes the FBI, the Oxnard Police Department, and the Port Hueneme Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorney Matt Coe-Odess is prosecuting this case.

Source: US FBI

LOS ANGELES – Four Pomona gang members and Mexican Mafia associates were found guilty by a jury today of a series of racketeering-related crimes, including the murder of a federal inmate at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in downtown Los Angeles in June 2020.

At the conclusion of a 20-day trial, the following defendants – all of Pomona – were found guilty of one count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, one count of violent crimes in aid of racketeering (VICAR) murder, and one count of first-degree murder within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States:

• Michael Lerma, 68, a.k.a. “Pomona Mike” and “Big Mike;”
• Carlos Gonzalez, 41, a.k.a. “Popeye;”
• Juan Sanchez, 33, a.k.a. “Squeaks;” and
• Jose Valencia Gonzalez, 44, a.k.a. “Swifty.”

The jury also found Lerma and Valencia Gonzalez guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances (methamphetamine and heroin) at MDC and in the Pomona area. Finally, the jury found Gonzalez and Valencia Gonzalez guilty each of one count of being felons in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Sanchez was found not guilty of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

All the defendants have been in federal custody since 2018.

“These defendants were key players in a criminal enterprise that committed murder, assault, and drug trafficking,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally. “Today’s verdict will take these offenders off our streets and make our community safer.”

“This case makes it clear that gang violence by Mexican Mafia members and associates has not only been directed from the streets, but also from prisons in California,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “This lengthy investigation exemplifies the commitment by agencies at the federal, state and local level who’ve collaborated for several years on a task force to arrive at justice in this case.”

According to evidence presented at trial, from February 2012 to June 2020, Lerma – a full member of the Mexican Mafia prison gang – controlled and extorted drug proceeds from Latino street gangs in and around Pomona, as well as from incarcerated Latinos in Calipatria State Prison in Imperial County. Members of Lerma’s criminal enterprise also engaged in robberies, identity theft and fraud, drug trafficking, and other acts of violence. 

In June 2020, Carlos Gonzalez, Valencia Gonzalez, and Sanchez – at Lerma’s direction – entered the cell at MDC Los Angeles and killed a victim – identified in court documents as “S.B.” The defendants murdered S.B. in retaliation for S.B. failing to pay drug debts deemed owed to Lerma’s cell of the Mexican Mafia prison gang. 

United States District Judge George H. Wu will schedule sentencing hearings in the coming months, at which time each defendant will face a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison.

Federal prosecutors so far have secured 16 convictions in this case, including that of Cheryl Perez-Castaneda, 62, of Pomona, who is serving a 12-year prison sentence for using her power on the street as a “señora” – a high-level female associate of Lerma’s – to solicit a murder and for participating in a carjacking attempt that resulted in the July 2013 shooting of M.A.

Kelly Deshannon, 43, of La Verne, is serving a prison sentence of more than seven years for serving as a “secretary” to Lerma and for facilitating the July 2013 armed robbery of M.A. and for extortion and distributing narcotics.

The FBI’s San Gabriel Valley Safe Streets Task Force (SGVSSTF), which is comprised of agents and officers with the FBI, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the Pomona Police Department, the El Monte Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, investigated this matter in conjunction with the FBI’s Los Angeles Metropolitan Violent Crime Task Force. The Pomona Police Department is the sponsoring agency of the SGVSSTF and has been the headquarters for the task force since its inception in 2008.          

Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle W. Kahan and Jason A. Gorn of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section, and Assistant United States Attorney Kellye M. Ng of the Violent and Organized Crime Section are prosecuting this case.

Source: US FBI

LOS ANGELES – The CEO of a Latin music conglomerate and his talent agency were found guilty by a jury today of conspiring to violate the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act by conducting business with a Guadalajara-based concert promoter with ties to Mexican drug cartels.

José Ángel Del Villar, 44, of Huntington Beach, the CEO of Del Records and its related talent agency Del Entertainment Inc., was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to transact in property of specially designated narcotics traffickers in violation of the Kingpin Act and 10 counts of violating the Kingpin Act.

Co-defendant Del Entertainment also was found guilty of all 11 counts of which Del Villar was convicted.

According to evidence presented at a nine-day trial, in April 2018, the defendants did business with Jesús Pérez Alvear, a.k.a. “Chucho,” of Guadalajara, Mexico, a music promoter who controlled Gallistica Diamante, a.k.a. Ticket Premier. Pérez promoted concerts for Del Entertainment in Mexico until March 2019.

The U.S. Treasury Department listed Pérez and his company as “specially designated narcotics traffickers” under the Kingpin Act on April 6, 2018, after concluding he facilitated money laundering for the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization. The Kingpin Act prevents people in the United States from conducting business with sanctioned persons and entities.

Even though Del Villar and Del Entertainment were aware that it was illegal to engage in transactions or dealings with Pérez, they willfully did business with him by continuing to have a Del Entertainment musical artist perform at concerts in which Pérez and Del Entertainment had a financial interest.

For example, on April 19, 2018, FBI agents approached a well-known musician and explicitly told him about Pérez’s designation under the Kingpin Act and how that prohibited him from conducting business with Pérez and performing concerts that Pérez promoted.

On April 28, 2018, the musician performed at a music concert which Pérez organized. Del Villar’s credit card was used to pay for a private jet that brought the musician from Van Nuys Airport to the performance in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

On multiple other occasions in 2018 and 2019, Pérez and Del Villar continued to do business by arranging for the musician to perform at concerts in Mexico – including Mexicali and San José Iturbide, Guanajuato.

“The defendants here chose to get into business with an individual they knew had ties to the CJNG and had been designated a narcotics trafficker under the Kingpin Act,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph McNally. “Cartels and transnational criminal organizations cause immeasurable harm to our country. We are using every tool to eliminate these organizations and will prosecute those that do business with cartels.”

“Doing business with government-sanctioned individuals is illegal and can have very serious consequences,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Today’s guilty verdict sends a message to music industry associates and others who engage in business with those sanctioned for laundering money for Mexican cartels that such criminal activity will not be tolerated by the FBI and our partners at the IRS and the United States Attorney’s Office.”

United States District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong scheduled an August 15 sentencing hearing, at which time Del Villar will face a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison for each count. Del Entertainment will face a sentence of five years of probation and a fine of $10 million for each count.

Co-defendant Luca Scalisi, 58, of West Hollywood, has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him in this case and is scheduled to be tried separately in July 2025.

Co-defendant Pérez, who previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transact in property of specially designated narcotics traffickers, was murdered in Mexico in December 2024. 

The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation investigated this matter. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control provided significant assistance in this matter.

Assistant United States Attorneys Benedetto L. Balding and Alexander B. Schwab of the Corporate and Securities Fraud Strike Force, and Kathrynne N. Seiden of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section, prosecuted this case, with substantial assistance from the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF. 

Source: US FBI

SANTA ANA, California – An Orange County man was sentenced today to 46 months in federal prison for orchestrating a scheme to steal high-value violins and robbing a bank in Irvine.

Mark Meng, 58, of Irvine, was sentenced by United States District Judge David O. Carter, who scheduled a restitution hearing for June 24 in this case.

Meng pleaded guilty in September 2024 to one count of wire fraud and one count of bank robbery. He has been in federal custody since May 2024.

From August 2020 to April 2023, Meng schemed to steal valuable violins and keep or resell them for his personal gain. Meng – posing as a collector of musical instruments – contacted violin shops across the country to express interest in receiving the violins on loan for a trial period to determine if he wished to buy them. In some cases, he purchased violin bows before asking for the violins on a trial-period basis.

After receiving each violin, Meng negotiated a purchase price for it, kept the instrument beyond the trial period, then provided the violin shops with a check or set of checks for the violin, knowing the whole time the checks he wrote to the violin shops would be rejected due to insufficient funds.

When a violin-shop representative contacted Meng to inform him that the shop’s bank had rejected his checks, he sent a new series of checks, which also later were rejected due to insufficient funds. Sometimes, Meng lied to the violin shops by falsely telling them he had mailed the violin back to them, but that they had been lost in the mail. Eventually, Meng stopped communicating with the violin shops.

After fraudulently obtaining the violins, Meng re-sold them to a buyer – often during the trial periods from the violin shops. For example, on February 1, 2023, a victim loaned Meng a Guilio Degani violin – valued at $175,000 – pursuant to a trial-period contract, which required Meng to return or purchase the violin by February 10, 2023. However, Meng attempted to sell this violin to a buyer – who was unaware of the violin’s stolen origin.

According to court documents, Meng also stole the following:

• one Lorenzo Ventapane violin, dated 1823, and valued at $175,000;
• one Guilio Degani violin, dated 1903, and valued at $55,000;
• one Caressa & Francais violin, dated 1913, and valued at $40,000;
• one Francais Lott violin bow, stamped “Lupot,” and valued at $7,500;
• one Gand & Bernardel violin, dated 1870, and valued at $60,000;
• one French, Charles J.B. Colin Mezin violin, valued at $6,500; and
• one German, E.H. Roth Guarneri violin, valued at $6,500.

Despite knowing that he did not own these violins and violin bows, Meng sold three of these stolen violins and a violin bow to a victim for a total of $44,700.

In January 2023, Meng emailed one violin shop in Alexandria, Virginia, to express an interest in obtaining the Ventapane violin and the Degani violin on a trial basis, all the while intending to fraudulently obtain then re-sell them.

On April 2, 2024, Meng entered a bank branch in Irvine, wearing a hat, sunglasses, a bandana covering his face, and blue latex gloves. Meng gave the bank teller a note stating “$18,000. Withdraw. Please. Stay Cool. No harm. Thx.” When the teller told Meng she did not have access to the money he demanded, Meng responded, “Give me whatever you have.” The teller, fearing harm to herself and her co-workers, handed Meng $446.

The FBI’s Art Crime Team investigated this matter, with assistance from the Irvine Police Department and the Glendale Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorneys Laura A. Alexander and Mark A. Williams, both of the Environmental Crimes and Consumer Protection Section, prosecuted this case.