LOS ANGELES – A federal grand jury today returned a 34-count indictment against Jose Huizar, an elected member of the Los Angeles City Council, on charges that he led a criminal enterprise where he used his powerful position at City Hall to enrich himself and his close associates, and unlawfully gave favorable treatment to developers who financed and facilitated bribes and other illicit financial benefits.

          The indictment incorporates the allegations made in last month’s criminal complaint that charged Huizar, 51, of Boyle Heights, with one count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. The indictment specifically alleges 402 overt acts that Huizar and his co-conspirators committed to further their criminal enterprise, including bribery, honest services fraud, and money laundering.

          In addition to the RICO conspiracy charge, the indictment charges Huizar with the following criminal charges: 12 counts of honest services wire fraud; two counts of honest services mail fraud; four counts of traveling interstate in aid of racketeering; six counts of bribery; five counts of money laundering; one count of structuring cash deposits to conceal bribes; one count of making a false statement to a financial institution; one count of making false statements to federal law enforcement; and one count of tax evasion.

          Huizar is expected to appear via videoconference for his arraignment, which is scheduled for August 3 in United States District Court.

          Huizar has represented Council District 14 (CD-14), which includes downtown Los Angeles and its surrounding communities, since 2005. Huizar for several years was chair of the city’s influential Planning and Land Use Management Committee, a position he lost after the FBI executed search warrants at his city offices and personal residence in November 2018. During the search of his home, agents seized approximately $129,000 cash that was stashed in Huizar’s closet and which, according to the indictment, he received from a Chinese billionaire and another businessperson seeking favors from him.

          The indictment alleges that Huizar operated the “CD-14 Enterprise,” along with co-conspirator members, including “Individual 1,” a former general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety and former deputy mayor; George Esparza, Huizar’s former special assistant; and real estate development consultant George Chiang. Members and associates of the criminal enterprise referred to Huizar as their “boss,” operated as a criminal organization, and worked together for common purposes, the indictment alleges.

          The CD-14 Enterprise allegedly had several objectives, including enriching its members and associates through means that included bribery, extortion, and honest services fraud; advancing its political goals and maintaining its control and authority; concealing the enterprise’s financial activities; and protecting the enterprise by concealing its activities and shielding the enterprise from detection by law enforcement, the city, and the public.

          Among the multitude of corruption allegations, the indictment alleges that Huizar illegally accepted more than $800,000 in benefits from Chairman E, a Chinese billionaire who runs a multinational development firm and who owns a hotel in Huizar’s district. Chairman E provided $600,000 in collateral to fund a settlement of a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Huizar by a former CD-14 staffer, allegations that threatened his 2015 re-election campaign, according to the indictment.

          The indictment outlines Huizar’s concealment of illicit benefits, including by instructing his special assistant on how to avoid bank reporting requirements, using his family members to launder hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, making false statements on a bank loan application and failing to report his illicit benefits on tax returns and ethics disclosure forms. Huizar allegedly engaged in obstructionist conduct, including attempting to influence other witnesses and lying to federal prosecutors and the FBI.

          In total, Huizar allegedly agreed to accept at least $1.5 million in illicit financial benefits.

          An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

          The charges of RICO conspiracy, honest services fraud, and money laundering each carry a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. The charge of making false statements to a financial institution has a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment. The bribery charges each carry a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. The charges of tax evasion, structuring, making false statements to law enforcement, and interstate travel in aid of racketeering have a five-year maximum prison sentence.

          Huizar is the fifth person to be charged in the ongoing corruption investigation being conducted by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The other four defendants have pleaded guilty. Esparza, Chiang, and Justin Jangwoo Kim, a Huizar fundraiser who admitted to facilitating bribes, are scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge John F. Walter in February 2021. Esparza, Chiang, and Kim are cooperating with the ongoing investigation.

          Former Los Angeles City Councilman Mitchell Englander pleaded guilty on July 7 to charges of scheming to falsify material facts related to trips he took to Las Vegas and Palm Springs that were funded by a businessperson. Englander’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for December 7, also before Judge Walter.

          The cases against Huizar and his associates in the CD-14 Enterprise are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mack E. Jenkins, Chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, and Assistant United States Attorneys Veronica Dragalin and Melissa Mills, also of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section.

          Any member of the public who has information related to this or any other public corruption matter in the City of Los Angeles is encouraged to send information to the FBI’s email tip line at pctips-losangeles@fbi.gov or to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565.

COMPLAINT

          LOS ANGELES – Special agents with the FBI this morning arrested Jose Huizar, an elected member of the Los Angeles City Council, on a federal racketeering charge that alleges he led a criminal enterprise that used his powerful position at City Hall to solicit and accept lucrative bribes and other financial benefits to enrich himself and his close associates in exchange for Huizar taking official actions favorable to the developers and others who financed and facilitated the bribes.

          Huizar, 51, of Boyle Heights, was taken into custody at his home without incident and is expected to make his initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

          Huizar was arrested pursuant to a federal criminal complaint filed on June 22 and unsealed this morning. The complaint charges Huizar with one count of conspiring to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and alleges that, as part of the criminal enterprise, he and his associates violated a series of laws, including bribery, honest services fraud, extortion and money laundering.

          “This case pulled back the curtain on rampant corruption at City Hall,” said United States Attorney Nick Hanna. “Councilman Huizar violated the public trust to a staggering degree, allegedly soliciting and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from multiple sources over many years. Using the power of his office to approve or stall large building projects, Huizar worked through a web of other corrupt city officials, lobbyists, consultants and developers to line his pockets and maintain his hold on Council District 14, which he turned into a money-making criminal enterprise that shaped the development landscape in Los Angeles.”

          “Mr. Huizar was busy enjoying the fruits of his alleged corruption while his criminal enterprise sold the city to the highest bidder behind the backs of taxpayers,” said Paul Delacourt, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “As we continue to investigate this case, we urge residents, business owners and city employees to come forward with information about bribery and illegal practices in government. The FBI relies on the cooperation of others to build cases that successfully root out corruption in order to restore integrity in public office.”

          Huizar has represented Council District 14 (CD-14), which includes downtown Los Angeles and its surrounding communities, since 2005. In addition to representing an area that has experienced a commercial real estate boom in recent years, Huizar for several years was chair of the city’s influential Planning and Land Use Management Committee, a position he lost after the FBI executed search warrants at his city offices and personal residence in November 2018. During the search of Huizar’s home, agents seized approximately $129,000 cash that was stashed in his closet.

          “The federal investigation has revealed that Huizar operated a pay-to-play scheme in the City, utilizing and commodifying the powerful Council seat of CD-14, whereby he solicited and accepted financial benefits from international (primarily Chinese) and domestic developers with projects in the City in exchange for favorable official actions,” according to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint.

          The 116-page affidavit alleges that Huizar operated the “CD-14 Enterprise,” along with co-conspirator members, including “Individual 1,” a former general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety and former deputy mayor; George Esparza, Huizar’s former special assistant; and real estate development consultant George Chiang. Members and associates of the criminal enterprise referred to Huizar as their “boss,” operated as a criminal organization, and worked together for common purposes, the complaint alleges. The CD-14 Enterprise allegedly had several objectives, including 1) enriching its members and associates through means that included bribery, extortion, and honest services fraud, 2) advancing its political goals and maintaining its control and authority, 3) concealing the enterprise’s financial activities, and 4) protecting the enterprise by concealing its activities and shielding the enterprise from detection by law enforcement, the city, and the public.

          In recent weeks, both Esparza and Chiang agreed to plead guilty to the same RICO charge that Huizar now faces.

          The CD-14 Enterprise was created in early 2013 by Huizar and Individual 1 “at a time when each of them faced significant threats to their political and professional careers,” according to the affidavit. Individual 1, who maintained close relationships with Chinese developers, introduced Huizar to “Chairman E,” a Chinese billionaire who runs a multinational development firm and who owns a hotel in Huizar’s district.

          In 2014, Individual 1 facilitated an arrangement whereby Chairman E provided $600,000 in collateral to fund a settlement of a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Huizar by a former CD-14 staffer, allegations that threatened his 2015 re-election campaign. In addition, Huizar directly and indirectly accepted cash and casino gambling chips on more than a dozen lavish trips to Las Vegas – trips that included rides on private jets and stays at luxurious casino villas, one of which cost over $38,000 per night. The complaint also alleges Huizar accepted a trip to Australia and other benefits from Chairman E. In exchange, Chairman E asked for a series of favors from Huizar over time.

          Ultimately, Chairman E provided over $800,000 in benefits to Huizar so that Huizar would assist Chairman E’s ambitious plans to redevelop his property in CD-14 and build the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, according to the affidavit.

          In a second scheme, “Developer C” agreed to pay a $500,000 cash bribe to secure Huizar’s help in resolving a labor organization’s appeal of a major real estate development which, when resolved, would save the developer millions of dollars. After a middleman, Justin Jangwoo Kim, collected $500,000 cash from Developer C, Kim and Esparza decided to keep some of the money for themselves. Kim pleaded guilty on June 3 to bribery charges and admitted facilitating the bribe from Developer C.

          A third major bribery scheme outlined in the affidavit involves “Company D,” another Chinese real estate firm that wanted to develop a large mixed-used project in CD-14. In exchange for Huizar’s support of the project, Company D agreed to hire Huizar “Associate 1” as a consultant to perform work – real estate reports that discussed development opportunities – that actually was completed by Chiang. The affidavit alleges that Company D also financed part of a Huizar family trip to China and agreed to contribute $100,000 to a political action committee that would benefit the campaign of Huizar’s close relative, who Huizar intended to replace him on the City Council after he was termed out in 2020.

          Other developers made donations to two PACs that would benefit “Relative A-1’s” campaign in exchange for Huizar taking official action to support their projects, the complaint alleges. One series of donations was made by “Company M” and facilitated by “Executive M,” who allegedly furnished Huizar with opposition research against two female staffers who had sued Huizar for sexual harassment in 2018. With Huizar’s help, Company M was able to get final approval in the fall of 2018 to construct a 35-story project in the Arts District with “minimal” affordable housing units and union labor requirements that saved the company an estimated $14 million, the affidavit alleges. Company M later bragged to its employees that this was a “truly amazing” feat “in a wealthy opinionated hipster community,” according to the affidavit.

          The complaint alleges a series of additional corrupt acts, including bribes to Huizar from “Businessperson A,” who wanted to develop business opportunities with Huizar’s help. Businessperson A allegedly provided Huizar a $10,000 monthly cash retainer, $10,000 worth of hotel accommodations on 21 separate occasions, and approximately $18,000 in lavish gifts that included suits, shoes and meals.

          Huizar allegedly leveraged his official position to pressure developers to make donations to Relative A-1’s campaign to ensure Huizar’s continued influence in the city and to steer work towards companies linked to his associates, including the law firm that employed Relative A-1, regardless of any legitimate business need.

          The complaint affidavit concludes by outlining Huizar’s concealment of illicit benefits, including by instructing his special assistant on how to avoid bank reporting requirements, using his family members to launder hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, making false statements on a bank loan application and failing to report his illicit benefits on tax returns and ethics disclosure forms. The complaint also alleges that Huizar engaged in obstructionist conduct, including attempting to influence other witnesses and lying to federal prosecutors and the FBI.

          A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

          The RICO conspiracy charge alleged in the complaint carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

          The cases against Huizar and his associates in the CD-14 Enterprise are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mack E. Jenkins, Chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, and Assistant United States Attorneys Veronica Dragalin and Melissa Mills, also of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section.

          Huizar is the fifth person to be charged in the ongoing corruption investigation being conducted by the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office. The other four defendants have agreed to plead guilty.

          Chiang is scheduled to plead guilty on June 26 before United States District Judge John F. Walter.

          The court has yet to schedule a hearing for Esparza to plead guilty.

          Kim is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Walter on August 17.

          Former Los Angeles City Councilman Mitchell Englander is scheduled to plead guilty on July 7 to charges of scheming to falsify material facts related to trips he took to Las Vegas and Palm Springs that were funded by Businessperson A.

          Any member of the public who has information related to this or any other public corruption matter in the City of Los Angeles is encouraged to send information to the FBI’s email tip line at pctips-losangeles@fbi.gov or to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565.

          LOS ANGELES – The former special assistant to a member of the Los Angeles City Council has agreed to plead guilty to a federal racketeering charge stemming from a “pay-to-play” bribery scheme where real estate developers and their proxies provided over $1 million in financial benefits, including cash, to the councilmember and others to ensure certain real estate projects received favored treatment.

          George Esparza, 33, of Boyle Heights, agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiring to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) statute.

          Esparza was charged with the racketeering offense in a criminal information filed today in United States District Court. In addition to the charging document, federal prosecutors filed a plea agreement in which Esparza committed to entering a guilty plea and agreed to continue cooperating in the ongoing investigation into political corruption in the City of Los Angeles.

          In the court documents filed today, Esparza admitted to participating in a criminal enterprise called the Council District A Enterprise (CD-A Enterprise), which was led by his one-time boss, who was chair of the City Council’s Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee and is described as “Councilmember A.”

          “Members and associates of the CD-A Enterprise conspired with one another to facilitate bribery schemes that would provide Councilmember A and other City officials financial benefits and keep Councilmember A in power and maintain the CD-A Enterprise’s political stronghold in the City,” according to the plea agreement.

          Esparza admitted that he was a member of the criminal enterprise from early 2013 through November 2018, which is when Esparza began cooperating with federal authorities and after the FBI executed multiple search warrants related to the investigation. According to the plea agreement, during the time of the conspiracy, Esparza and Councilmember A accepted financial benefits and agreed to perform official acts, including:

filing motions and voting on projects, including matters before the City Council;

taking, or not taking, action on the PLUM Committee to influence the approval process and project costs;

negotiating with and exerting pressure on labor unions and other city entities to resolve issues on projects;

exerting pressure on developers with projects pending before the city; and

taking official action to enhance the professional reputation and marketability of businesspersons in Los Angeles.

          While a member of the criminal enterprise, Esparza participated in several schemes, he admitted in his plea agreement. One scheme centered on a massive downtown project described as “Project E,” which was being developed by a Chinese company run by a Chinese billionaire called “Chairman E” in court papers.

          “Chairman E provided defendant Esparza and Councilmember A financial benefits in over a dozen trips to casinos in Las Vegas and Australia,” according to the plea agreement. “Between June 2014 and January 2018, defendant Esparza personally accepted at least approximately $32,000 in gambling chips, plus flights on private jets and commercial airlines, stays at luxurious hotels, expensive meals and alcohol, spa services, event tickets, and escort services from Chairman E.”

          The plea agreement also states that, at the urging of another city official described as “Individual 1,” Chairman E agreed to facilitate a $600,000 payment to help Councilmember A confidentially resolve a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Councilmember A during a 2014 re-election campaign.

          In exchange for the $600,000 from Chairman E, Councilmember A routinely assisted with Chairman E’s requests. For example, Councilmember A introduced and secured the passage of a resolution before the City Council that recognized Chairman E’s “achievements and contributions to the economy of CD-A,” the plea agreement states.

          Furthermore, Chairman E provided bribes to Esparza and Councilmember A because Councilmember A was poised to significantly benefit plans to redevelop Property E and “transform it into a 77-story skyscraper, making it the tallest building west of the Mississippi River,” according to the plea agreement. This included meeting with Chairman E and his team to discuss tax rebates and other incentives from the City, as well as Councilmember A providing assistance in hiring a consultant to work on Project E. At one point, Esparza told another member of the CD-A staff that Chairman E had “leverage” over Councilmember A because of the financial benefits Chairman E provided. According to court documents, “Chairman E provided over $1 million in bribes to Councilmember A so that Councilmember A would benefit Chairman E’s plans to redevelop his property in CD-A.”

          A second bribery scheme described in the plea agreement centers on Project C and a $500,000 cash bribe funded by Developer C to secure Councilmember A’s help in resolving a labor organization’s appeal, which halted the approval process of the real estate development. This bribe, which was facilitated by political fundraiser Justin Jangwoo Kim, was designed to obtain Councilmember A’s influence “to pressure Labor Organization A to withdraw, abandon, or otherwise lose its appeal opposing Project C,” which would allow the project to move forward and would save Developer C $30 million in development costs, the plea agreement states. Esparza admitted that he played a role in negotiating the bribe, as well as having discussions with representatives of Labor Organization A.

          In March, Kim agreed to plead guilty to a bribery charge for his role in this scheme. Esparza admitted that he and Kim kept some of the money paid in 2017 as kickbacks for facilitating the bribe, and that he hid $200,000 in cash for Councilmember A. In mid-2017, Esparza asked an employee of Chairman E to conceal the $200,000, as well as other illicit cash, because Esparza feared law enforcement would search his house and discover the money.

          In another scheme related to the criminal enterprise, Esparza admitted accepting money from “Businessman A,” who asked Esparza and Councilmember A to use their official positions to make introductions to developers and advocate that they use Businessperson A’s business. For approximately the first six months of 2017, Esparza accepted monthly cash payments of approximately $8,000 to $10,000, with Businessperson A sometimes paying Esparza in the bathroom during meetings in restaurants, according to the plea agreement. Esparza also went on a Businessman A-funded trip to Las Vegas in June 2017 – a trip also attended by then-City Councilman Mitchell Englander, who also has agreed to plead guilty in this investigation related to lying to the FBI about cash and other benefits received from Businessperson A on that trip.

          In his plea agreement, Esparza also admitted to lying to special agents with the FBI during interviews in June and July of 2017 by falsely stating, among other things, that he had no knowledge of any city official helping on a project in exchange for money, gifts or campaign contributions.

          The court has not scheduled a date for Esparza to enter his guilty plea. Once he does formally enter the guilty plea, he will face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

          The case against Esparza is part of an ongoing public corruption investigation being conducted by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

          The case against Esparza is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mack E. Jenkins, Chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, and Assistant United States Attorney Veronica Dragalin of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section.

          Esparza is the fourth person to agree to plead guilty to a federal felony related to this ongoing investigation. Kim is scheduled to enter his guilty plea on June 3, and Englander is set to plead guilty on June 4. Real estate development consultant George Chiang earlier this month agreed to plead guilty to a RICO charge for participating in the pay-to-play scheme and is set to enter his guilty plea on June 26.

          Any member of the public who has information related to this or any other public corruption matter in the City of Los Angeles is encouraged to send information to the FBI’s email tip line at pctips-losangeles@fbi.gov or to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565.