A 34-year-old deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to hindering a federal investigation into a self-proclaimed cryptocurrency mogul known as “The Godfather,” authorities said.
According to officials in the U.S. Attorney’s Los Angeles office, Scott Allen Simpkins, a Brea resident, was assigned to LASD’s Lakewood Station, where he was a member of the department’s Special Enforcement Bureau and SWAT Team while also working for the private security firm Saavedra & Associates, which was owned by a former LASD deputy and federal task force officer, Eric Chase Saavedra.
Saavedra, a 43-year-old Chino resident, hired current LASD deputies and other law enforcement officers to provide private security for his clients, including Adam Iza, 25, who lived between Beverly Hills and Newport Beach.
Iza, often known as “The Godfather,” recruited Simpkins and then-LASD Deputy Christopher Michael Camden, 34, in August 2021 to perform security at a party in his Bel Air estate.
“At that time, Simpkins knew Iza possessed at least one firearm,” prosecutors claimed.
According to federal investigators, when the party concluded in the early morning hours, Simpkins discovered that the party planner, known in court filings as R.C., had been thrown out due to erratic behavior.
The next day, Simpkins and Camden worked another shift at the Bel Air house, escorting R.C. to Iza’s office and closing the door behind them.
“Iza—seated behind his office desk—then took steps to intimidate R.C. to obtain $25,000 by placing four or five rounds of live 9mm ammunition on his desk across from R.C.,” the government’s attorneys stated. While speaking to the victim, Iza picked up the live ammunition and twirled a bullet in his hand as he spoke threateningly to R.C.”
The self-proclaimed cryptocurrency businessman then seized R.C.’s phone, acquired access, and transferred the funds to a bank account he controlled. Simpkins and Cadman escorted the party planner from the premises following the transaction.
“Following the event, Iza recruited Saavedra & Associates as his private security provider and made significant payments to Saavedra and his workers. Simpkins and Cadman earned $1,400 apiece for their stints at the August 2021 party and the August 16 incident with R.C., according to investigators. “In response to Simpkins and Cadman helping to secure a long-term contract with Iza, Saavedra & Associates paid them approximately 10% of the company’s total profits for the contract’s first month.”
After Iza was arrested in September 2024 for threats against R.C. and other undisclosed crimes, officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation executed a search warrant on Simpkins and seized his phone.
During a November 2024 interview with federal investigators, who warned Simpkins that lying could result in criminal prosecution, the 34-year-old repeatedly lied to agents and prosecutors, claiming he never saw any ammunition or shell casings in Iza’s office during the R.C. incident and that he never witnessed any financial transaction.
“Simpkins admitted in his plea agreement that he knew his lies had the natural and probable effect of interfering with the criminal investigation and legal proceedings against Iza and were material to the investigation,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
According to federal officials, Simpkins, who was placed on leave by the sheriff’s department but has yet to leave, faces a maximum term of ten years in federal prison. He is set to be sentenced on July 13.
A spokeswoman with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department told KTLA:
“[Simpkins] was dismissed from service on October 30, 2024, pending the results of a criminal inquiry. These activities violate the oath that our staff are sworn to honor and do not reflect the dedication and integrity of the men and women in this department.
“The County of Los Angeles and the Department have policies and procedures concerning outside or off-duty employment to ensure all personnel meet the required annual guidelines.”
Iza, Saavedra, and Cadman have all pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges and are awaiting sentencing.
Another former LASD deputy, 44-year-old Eastvale resident Michael David Coberg, was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison and ordered to pay $127,000 in restitution for his role in helping Iza extort a business rival and arranging to frame another adversary with a bogus illegal drug possession arrest in 2021.
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