A former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for abusing his badge on behalf of self-styled crypto businessman Adam Iza, marking the final sentencing among five deputies tied to the scheme.
Eric Chase Saavedra, 42, of Chino, once served as a detective in the LASD’s anti-gang unit and as a federal task-force officer with the U.S. Marshals Service. He also founded Saavedra & Associates LLC, a private security firm that employed active deputies and other law enforcement officers. Court documents show Iza paid roughly $100,000 a month for around-the-clock guards from August 2021 to March 2022 and again from July 2024 until his arrest in September 2024.
Prosecutors said Saavedra recruited 20 to 25 deputies for Iza’s security detail, paying about $750 per shift. More seriously, he used his LASD credentials to access sensitive law enforcement databases and gather personal information on people Iza considered enemies and their relatives. In one January 2022 episode, Saavedra applied for a search warrant and falsely told a Los Angeles Superior Court judge that a victim’s phone number was connected to a firearms suspect. Iza believed that person held a laptop containing more than $100 million in cryptocurrency. After obtaining the location, Saavedra passed the address to Iza, and in March 2022 three armed men were sent to break into the home and take the laptop.
Saavedra pleaded guilty in February 2025 to one count of conspiracy against rights. He admitted hiding roughly $373,146 from the IRS and agreed to forfeit 32 Louis Vuitton bags, 27 pairs of Gucci shoes, five Louis Vuitton wallets and a money-counting machine. The judge ordered him to pay $90,984 in restitution to the IRS, noting his “prompt and extensive cooperation” led to a lighter sentence.
The other four ex-deputies received terms ranging from 12 to 63 months. Michael David Coberg is serving 63 months, Christopher Michael Cadman 21 months, Scott Allen Simpkins 18 months, and David Anthony Rodriguez 12 months. Iza himself has been in federal custody since September 2024 and pleaded guilty in January 2025 to conspiracy against rights, wire fraud and tax evasion. He is already serving a 15-year sentence for an attempted Bitcoin robbery and kidnapping near Danbury, Connecticut, with his California sentencing set for October 5.
