Ex-LA Sheriff's Deputy Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for False Cellphone Tracking Affidavit

According to the DOJ's July 20 sentencing announcement, David Anthony Rodriguez, 45, a former Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputy, was sentenced on Monday to 12 months in federal prison. Rodriguez pleaded guilty in July 2025 to conspiracy against rights after submitting a false search warrant affidavit to obtain cellphone location data for a private client.

Prosecutors said Rodriguez falsely claimed a robbery investigation required GPS tracking of the victim's phone, despite knowing the victim had no connection to the crime. He obtained location pings that tracked the victim to Utah and shared the information with Eric Chase Saavedra, another former LASD deputy. The case is tied to cryptocurrency businessman Adam Iza, who pleaded guilty to multiple federal crimes including wire fraud and tax evasion, as well as conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery in a bitcoin kidnapping plot.