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The Central District Court of California sentenced former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Michael David Coberg, aged 44, to 63 months in prison for his involvement in cryptocurrency extortion. The court also mandated that he pay restitution of $127,000.
In September, Coberg pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit extortion and violating civil rights. According to the local prosecutor’s office, the ex-deputy collaborated with Adam Iza, the founder of the cryptocurrency platform Zort, who is known by the nickname “Godfather.” In 2024, Iza was arrested in connection with a case involving the theft of crypto assets, tax evasion, and conspiracy with law enforcement officials. He is currently in federal custody awaiting sentencing.
The prosecution claims that Coberg assisted Iza in intimidating victims and extorting money from them during disputes related to investments in cryptocurrency schemes. Iza compensated Coberg for his services with at least $20,000. On one occasion, according to the charges, the former deputy accompanied armed associates of Iza to ensure that a victim transferred $127,000 to him via bank account.
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In September 2021, Coberg aided Iza in luring a potential victim from Miami to Los Angeles to frame and accuse him of drug possession. Coberg, along with his accomplices, devised a scheme in which the victim’s ex-girlfriend called, pretending to be interested in a romantic relationship, and persuaded him to fly to Los Angeles to meet and “consume drugs” together. An accomplice purchased a plane ticket for the victim, picked him up from Los Angeles International Airport, took him to obtain drugs, and during the trip, Coberg stopped the vehicle. The plan succeeded, and the victim was coerced into transferring $25,000 to Iza.
“Coberg took an oath to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the United States. However, he betrayed that oath and those he swore to protect by abusing his authority. He did this for a common reason: greed,” stated the prosecutor’s office.
In January, a Los Angeles court sentenced 45-year-old Chinese national Jingliang Su to three years and ten months in prison for laundering $36.9 million through cryptocurrencies. Previously, a court in the Southern District of New York sentenced senior promoter of the IcomTech pyramid scheme, Magdaleno Mendoza, to six years in prison for fraud, ordering him to pay $789,000 in restitution to the victims.
