Former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy David Anthony Rodriguez has been ordered to spend a year in federal prison after admitting he lied to a judge to secure a search warrant, then funneled the resulting GPS data to people who used it to stalk and threaten a man. Prosecutors say the 45-year-old ex-deputy falsely obtained tracking information on a client’s estranged husband; Rodriguez pleaded guilty in July 2025 and was fired by the department in October 2023.
How prosecutors say the warrant was obtained
According to federal prosecutors, Rodriguez went to court in July 2022 and claimed a detective needed his help on a robbery investigation in Cudahy, even though he allegedly knew the situation had nothing to do with any robbery case. The Department of Justice says that false story convinced a judge to approve a warrant for GPS pings tied to the estranged husband’s cellphone. Those pings showed the man was in Utah, and prosecutors say Rodriguez then passed the coordinates to co-conspirators, who used the information to intimidate the victim.
Sentence and where it landed
On Monday, Rodriguez was sentenced to a one-year term in federal prison, according to CBS Los Angeles. The outlet reports the punishment came after his guilty plea and the U.S. Attorney’s description of how he abused the warrant process. The Sheriff’s Department, CBS noted, had already stripped him of his badge back in October 2023.
Tied to a wider 'crypto godfather' probe
Prosecutors say Rodriguez’s side work in private security was not happening in a vacuum. They link it to a broader federal investigation into cryptocurrency businessman Adam Iza, whom authorities accuse of hiring off-duty deputies to muscle rivals. Earlier coverage of the plea deals and federal filings in that wider case is laid out in LA deputies in crypto 'godfather' case on Hoodline.
Sentencing contrast among co-defendants
The fallout from the Iza-linked probe has not been one-size-fits-all. Michael David Coberg, another former LASD deputy whom prosecutors say was paid at least $20,000 a month by Iza and helped pull off a sham drug arrest, drew a much stiffer sentence. He was handed 63 months in federal prison in March, according to the Los Angeles Times. That gap in prison time reflects how judges have been weighing the different roles and levels of harm inside the alleged intimidation scheme.
Legal implications and next steps
Rodriguez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy against rights, a federal civil rights charge that carries a statutory maximum of 10 years behind bars, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In its plea announcement, the Department of Justice noted that investigators from the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation helped build the case. Prosecutors say additional defendants in the broader probe are still awaiting their own days in court, with more sentencing hearings on the calendar.
