Key Takeaways
- Au was sentenced to 18 months in prison for filing a false tax return.
- She moved more than $2.6 million into her personal bank accounts.
- A judge ordered $1.48 million in restitution and forfeiture of luxury assets.
The Money That Reached Her Accounts
Prosecutors said that more than $2.6 million flowed from company accounts into Iris Rabaya Au’s personal bank accounts between 2020 and 2023. The Irvine woman failed to report that income on her federal tax returns, according to the Justice Department’s Sept. 21 sentencing announcement. Au, 37, received 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in March 2025 to filing a false tax return.
U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson also ordered Au to pay $1,484,343 in restitution and forfeit luxury and high-performance cars, designer handbags, and three “Godfather” sculptures, among other assets. The nickname belonged to her former boyfriend, Adam Iza, who used it while presenting himself as a cryptocurrency businessman. Au’s conviction pertained to the income she omitted from her returns.
Prosecutors described her role as part of the financial operation behind Iza’s spending. In a sentencing memorandum, they argued:
“[Au] set up the financial infrastructure that enabled Adam Iza to move, spend, and conceal millions of dollars in fraud proceeds while she personally benefited from the wealth.”
Shell Companies, Deputies and $16 Million in Crypto
At Iza’s direction, Au created shell corporations and opened bank accounts in their names, according to her plea agreement. She then used funds deposited in those accounts to pay roughly $1 million to Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies, mostly in cash. The money also covered luxury property, vehicles, jewelry, clothing, and nearly $10 million in recreational spending for the couple.
Au used the accounts to acquire approximately $16 million in cryptocurrency for Iza, giving him digital assets he could hold, exchange or transfer. The Justice Department described the $16 million as purchases made for Iza through Au’s companies.
That purchase was separate from the more than $2.6 million she transferred into her personal accounts and failed to report. The IRS lists unreported income and false tax documents among the tax violations that can be reported to the agency.
The deputies provided Iza with private security, but the misconduct extended beyond that work. Prosecutors said deputies obtained confidential law enforcement information and court-authorized search warrants targeting people involved in Iza’s financial or personal disputes. Iza’s arrest in September 2024 brought public attention to the investigation.
In a connected case, former deputy David Anthony Rodriguez received a one-year prison sentence after admitting he used a false warrant application to obtain a man’s cell phone location for a private client. His later prison sentence exposed how police powers were misused.
Iza Faces Sentencing in a Separate California Case
Iza fraudulently obtained access to Meta advertising accounts and associated credit lines, then sold access to them, according to the Justice Department. He pleaded guilty in January 2025 to conspiracy against rights, wire fraud, and tax evasion in federal court in Los Angeles. His sentencing in that case is scheduled for Oct. 5.
A separate case arose from an attempted bitcoin robbery and kidnapping in Connecticut in August 2024. Authorities said Iza helped plan and fund a scheme targeting the parents of a person involved in a large bitcoin theft. The parents were kidnapped after a violent carjacking.
A Connecticut federal judge sentenced Iza to 15 years in prison on Sept. 9 for his involvement in that plot. The sentence precedes the still-pending sentencing in his California case.
