A former Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy who was on a cryptocurrency magnate's payroll and extorted, falsely arrested the mogul's rivals was sentenced on Monday to more than five years in prison.
Michael David Coberg, a former deputy and Sheriff's Department helicopter pilot at the time of the crime, pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to commit extortion and conspiracy against rights.
Coberg was sentenced to 63 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Coberg's attorney had requested a two-year prison term, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
Coberg is one of several former deputies who admitted to their involvement in a sprawling illegal enterprise run by Adam Iza, a Southern California crypto mogul who referred to himself as "the Godfather."
Coberg Conspired with Iza to Lure a Victim from Miami to LA, Then Got Him Arrested with Drugs
Coberg worked as a private security guard and business partner for Iza and received at least $20,000 per month for his services, according to his plea agreement.
In September 2021, Coberg conspired with Iza and others to lure another victim – identified in court documents as "R.C." – from Miami to Los Angeles to set up the victim and cause him to be arrested with illegal narcotics. During the previous month, Coberg learned of a dispute between Iza and the victim and that Iza and two corrupt LASD deputies working for Iza forced the victim at gunpoint to transfer $25,000 from the victim's bank account to an account Iza controlled.
Coberg and other co-conspirators set up a plan in which the victim's ex-girlfriend called the victim and pretended to be interested in pursuing a romantic relationship to convince the victim to fly to Los Angeles to meet with her to use drugs together. At Coberg's advice and counseling, the co-conspirator purchased the airplane ticket for the victim, picked him up at Los Angeles International Airport in a white Tesla, drove the victim to obtain drugs, and later traveled to a location in Paramount where an LASD deputy would make the traffic stop and arrest.
Christopher Michael Cadman, 33, of Fullerton, a corrupt LASD deputy who had participated in the intimidation of the victim in August 2021 resulting in the $25,000 payment to Iza, also helped set up the false arrest. Cadman pleaded guilty on August 7 to federal criminal charges and awaits sentencing in January 2026.
With Cadman's assistance, Coberg lied to a fellow LASD deputy that a confidential informant was driving a white Tesla with an individual who had an outstanding arrest warrant and possessed illegal drugs. That deputy later conducted the traffic stop, searched the Tesla, found cocaine in the car and psilocybin mushrooms inside the victim's backpack, and arrested the victim.
Coberg Also Extorted $127K from Another Victim Who Had a Financial Dispute with Iza
The following month, Coberg conspired with Iza to extort at least $127,000 from a victim — identified only by the initials L.A. — with whom Iza had a financial dispute. Coberg acted as an investigator and told the victim he was an active-duty law enforcement officer.
While Coberg stood watch over the victim, Iza demanded – and recorded a video of – the victim transferring $127,000 to a bank account Iza controlled. Iza then directed his security guards to take away the victim's passport and told them to drive the victim back to the victim's hotel.
The next day, Coberg continued to interrogate the victim about the financial dispute and the location of the victim's business partner. Later that day, Coberg took Iza and the victim to a shooting range in Iza's residence and left the two individuals alone. Iza then held the victim at gunpoint and demanded the victim's business partner transfer money to him, which the victim's business partner did later that day.
Iza Currently in Federal Custody, Pleaded Guilty Last Year to Wire Fraud, Tax Evasion Charges
Iza, previously of Beverly Hills and Newport Beach, has been in federal custody since September 2024. He pleaded guilty last year to charges of conspiracy against rights, wire fraud and tax evasion. He was separately charged in Connecticut last year with conspiracy to commit kidnapping and conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery.
Iza built a mini-empire off "fraudulent marketing and cryptocurrency schemes," according to the U.S. attorney's office in L.A. Iza made millions online while intimidating and extorting people, illegally hacking Facebook accounts and engaging in other criminal activity.
