The investigation extends to the deputies of Los Angeles, who are probably related to the “godfather” of cryptocurrencies

Adam Iza grew up far from the Bel Air mansion where he lived until his arrest in September.

According to his lawyer, Joseph Sadat, Iza grew up poor in Iraq, borrowing a computer from his uncle before coming to the US as a teenager and creating a profitable cryptocurrency trading platform.

But when Iza became rich, Sadat said, he attracted “the worst type of bloodsucking characters that Southern California has to offer.”

That includes several Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies who were allegedly hired to carry out Iza’s criminal orders, according to federal prosecutors.

At least six deputies have been relieved of duty in connection with the case — three more than previously reported, according to court records and sources in the sheriff’s department. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation.

The case first came to light two months ago when federal authorities arrested Iza, 24, calling him the “godfather” and charging him with financial crimes and extortion.

Charged in October, Iza pleaded not guilty earlier this month and returned to court on Wednesday. A judge ruled that Iza should remain behind bars while he awaits trial, despite his lawyer’s arguments that medical complications from the cosmetic leg-lengthening procedure could have caused his death.

In September, federal authorities said three unnamed lawmakers were involved in extortion schemes involving Iza, and the massive investigation has continued to grow ever since. In October, a fourth deputy appeared in the indictment. Two sources said last month that sheriff’s officials appeared to be taking an interest, reviewing time sheets in certain units and asking pointed questions about outside work.

In late October, the sheriff’s department confirmed that “several” more deputies had been relieved of their duties. Officials declined to name them or say how many there were, although three sources told The Times that at least three more law enforcement officers had been suspended, bringing the total to six, with several more under surveillance.

No one appears to have been charged criminally, and it’s unclear if anyone has hired lawyers.

Ciaran McAvoy, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, declined to comment on whether anyone else has been charged in the case.

Laura Eimiller, a spokeswoman for the FBI, said she “cannot comment on the investigation other than that it is ongoing.”

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When Iza was a teenager, his family left the Middle East and landed in Missouri.

His lawyer, Sadat, said that after Iza came to Los Angeles, he developed “a new type of software that served as a neural network to help trade/forecast the crypto market.”

Federal court records trace Iza’s alleged crimes back to 2021, when prosecutors say he began paying Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies to act as his mercenaries and help him steal from his enemies.

One of the officers — identified in court records as Deputy 1 — operated a private security company that Iza allegedly paid more than $100,000 a month to escort his “teams of active LASD deputies” around the clock.

During a party at Iza’s Bel-Air home in August 2021, his bodyguards — at least one of whom was in law enforcement — held a hired event organizer at gunpoint, according to court filings. Iza allegedly took the man’s phone and used it to transfer money to herself because he was unhappy with the holiday.

Iza is accused of keeping pictures of the party organizer’s credit cards and enough other personal information to continue taking money, eventually draining the man’s accounts of “tens of thousands of dollars.”

A few weeks after the incident, according to Iza’s indictment, Deputy 1 contacted a narcotics detective and told him that a confidential informant claimed the party organizer had a large amount of fentanyl and cocaine at his home. Sheriff’s deputies later searched the home, but no drugs were found.

The charging documents, which identify the event organizer only by the initials RC, say the plot against him extended to his romantic partner. Prosecutors have not named or charged the woman, but allege she secretly communicated with Iza and used money he gave her to buy drugs that were later found in RC’s car.

After RC returned from an out-of-town trip, prosecutors say a sheriff’s deputy — identified in court records as Deputy 4 — stopped the car as RC and the woman were driving to the Paramount on Sept. 27, 2021.

During the stop, the woman allegedly told deputy 4 that R.C. placed drugs under the passenger seat of the car. Deputy 4 searched and found what appeared to be cocaine and psilocybin mushrooms.

RC spent several days in jail before the case was dismissed for lack of evidence.

During the entire stop, the romantic partner of the holiday organizer allegedly communicated with Iza. The indictment alleges that she gave the deputy a fictitious name, date of birth and phone number, but was not arrested or cited.

Prosecutors say RC once texted Iza and claimed he had been framed.

“The police have had you on their watch list for a week, so complain to them (about being framed). Ha ha ha A worthless loser,” Iza replied, according to the indictment.

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On the eve of Thanksgiving 2021, Iza hired a private investigator to help him track down a business associate identified in court records as “EZ.” The Times was able to identify him as Enzo Zelocchi, whom he described as “an actor, producer and innovator.”

According to court documents, Iza claimed Zelochki stole a laptop believed to hold millions of dollars in cryptocurrency. But Zelocki said in an interview this week that the laptop belonged to him.

A meeting was held on November 21, 2021. According to Zelocki, he hoped to return the money that Iza owed him. At one point, Zelochki was driving his car with Iza in the back seat when Iza asked to stop at a gas station in Riverside County to get something to eat, according to court records.

As they stood by the car, an SUV pulled up and two of Iza’s bodyguards — identified in the incident report as former Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy Ray Dudgeon and former assistant guardian Brian Rawlings — jumped out. One of the men approached with a gun, according to the federal indictment.

Zelochki said the guards abused him and tried to force him into an SUV. He told The Times that he “was able to break free and run inside the gas station.” He says he told investigators he thought Iza was trying to kidnap him.

Dudgeon could not be reached for comment. A person who answered a phone number associated with Rowling did not offer comment. None of the guards appear to have been charged in the case.

When the responding Riverside County sheriff’s deputy interviewed Iza, he said he was the one who feared being kidnapped and that he texted his bodyguards for help.

After Zelocki fled, Iza and his bodyguards took two bags from the trunk of Zelocki’s car and drove off, according to the indictment.

Over the next four months, Deputy 1 and another Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department employee — identified as Deputy 3 — repeatedly searched confidential law enforcement databases to obtain personal information about Zelochki, his accomplices and their families, prosecutors said.

“They started attacking everyone in my life,” Zelocki said. “I was literally hiding out in Los Angeles.”

Then in January 2022, according to court records, Deputy 1 got a judge to approve a warrant for the GPS location information needed to track several cell phones, including one that belonged to Zelochka. According to the criminal complaint, the deputy falsely stated that Zelocki’s number was linked to a suspect in a firearms investigation.

Zelochki called the sheriff’s deputies involved “corrupt.” Although some deputies were released, he said he did not see any of them being detained.

Those involved, including deputies, “tried to destroy my reputation physically, morally,” Zelocki said, adding that he was forced to move to Europe as a result of the persecution.

“You don’t understand how much I suffered,” he said. “It was a nightmare.”

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In addition to racketeering, federal court records accuse Iza of hiding millions of dollars from tax officials by failing to report income and funneling money through shell companies with co-conspirators. Some of that money allegedly went to about $64,000 in surgery to lengthen his legs.

This week’s status conference focused on re-surgery. When Iza appeared before US Magistrate Judge A. Joel Richlin, one hand cuffed and the other clutching a cane.

Iza’s lawyer, Sadat, told the judge that his client underwent leg lengthening surgery in November 2022, which involved leg fractures and was “very traumatic”.

“It’s a very intensive procedure that many doctors don’t even perform ethically,” Sadat said.

According to Sadat, Izah was due to have surgery to remove the leg extensions within a year of the first operation, but delayed her appointment and was arrested in September while the rods were still in his legs. Sadat said his client is currently dealing with painful abscesses.

Sadat told the court that Iza’s doctor, who lives in Nevada, was the “premier doctor, the #1 leg lengthening surgeon in the world,” and provided a letter from the doctor saying the rods needed to be removed.

According to Sadat, Dr. Kevin Debiparshad said that if the procedure is not done immediately, Iza could seriously damage the tissues, muscles and nerves in his legs.

Cosmetic leg lengthening surgeries, which are reportedly gaining in popularity, can add 2 to 6 inches to a person’s height. Sadat said that several doctors were performing the procedure and that Debiparshad would be the one to fix Iza’s situation.

“We’re dealing with a 24-year-old guy who has a time bomb in his leg,” Sadat told the judge.

Assoc. US Attorney Daniel J. O’Brien said he has been in discussions with the Bureau of Prisons and the U.S. Marshals Service about organizing the operation in Nevada.

Richlin asked why Iza was not examined by a specialist to determine if it was medically necessary.

“I truly believe that we lack a physician today with sufficient experience to consult Mr. Izu and diagnose his condition,” Richlin said.

Sadat asked that Iza be temporarily released to his parents, who were present in the courtroom, and that GPS monitoring be turned on so that he could undergo surgery more quickly.

Richlin denied the request, reiterating that he previously believed Iza was a flight risk and saying he was “a danger to society.”

After the hearing, Sadat said he was “disappointed” with the judge’s decision. He called the operation “urgent and medically necessary” and said the doctor had warned Iza was in danger of dying.

“We are fighting against time,” Sadat said.