The former aide to a disgraced ex-Los Angeles city councilman, Jose Huizar, managed to evade a prison sentence on Friday, despite playing a pivotal role in his boss’s corruption scheme and initially lying to the FBI during the investigation’s early stages.
George Esparza, who worked alongside Jose Huizar, was deeply involved in a sprawling $1.5 million graft operation that led to Huizar receiving a 13-year prison sentence in January for tax evasion and racketeering. The investigation into Huizar’s actions, dubbed “Casino Loyale” by the FBI, gradually unveiled the depth of the corruption.
In 2020, Esparza pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate federal anti-racketeering laws. On Friday, U.S. District Judge John Walter sentenced Esparza to 12 months of home detention and ordered him to perform 300 hours of community service. Additionally, Esparza must pay restitution of $130,459 to the city of Los Angeles.
Judge Walter cited Esparza’s “extraordinary” cooperation with federal authorities as the main reason for the lenient sentence. Walter noted that in his two decades as a district court judge, he had never encountered a defendant who provided such extensive and beneficial cooperation to the government.
Huizar’s pay-to-play scheme at City Hall saw him extorting a minimum of $1.5 million in kickbacks from property developers, leveraging his position as the chairman of the Los Angeles Planning and Land Use Management Committee—a role that granted him significant influence over major construction projects in the city.
One prominent case involved the Chinese developer Shenzhen World, owned by Wei Huang, who desired to enhance the LA Grand Hotel with a 77-floor mixed skyscraper. To secure Huizar’s approval, Huang reportedly showered him with various inducements, including cash, casino gambling chips, private jet flights, luxury hotel stays, expensive meals, spa services, prostitution services, and political donations, as documented in court records.
Esparza played the role of Huizar’s frontman, conveying demands for bribes using coded language. He also joined Huizar on several opulent trips to Las Vegas alongside Wei, relishing the luxurious perks.
Prosecutors revealed that Huizar and Wei made eight trips to Las Vegas casinos together between 2014 and 2016, some of which included Esparza. The FBI was tipped off about this arrangement by staff at the Palazzo Las Vegas, who had identified Huizar as a politically significant figure, or “politically exposed person” (PEP). Anti-money laundering guidelines call for heightened scrutiny of PEPs due to their increased risk of engaging in bribery, corruption, and money laundering.
Wei, a billionaire, was not present at Shenzhen World’s 2022 bribery trial and is currently deemed a fugitive by the U.S. government.
