Description: Los Angeles, California criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant charged with conspiracy to commit cyberstalking, perjury, and obstruction of justice.
Ian R. Diaz, 45, of Glendora, California, and his then-wife, an unindicted co-conspirator (CC-1), posed as a person with whom Diaz was formerly in a relationship (Jane Doe). In that guise, they sent themselves harassing and threatening electronic communications that contained apparent threats to harm CC-1; solicited and lured men found through Craigslist “personal” advertisements to engage in so-called “rape fantasies” in an attempt to stage a purported sexual assault on CC-1 orchestrated by Jane Doe; and staged one or more hoax sexual assaults and attempted sexual assaults on CC-1. Diaz and CC-1 then reported this conduct to local law enforcement, falsely claiming that Jane Doe posed a genuine and serious threat to Diaz and CC-1. Their actions caused local law enforcement to arrest, charge, and detain Jane Doe in jail for nearly three months for conduct for which Diaz and CC-1 framed her.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Harry A. Lidsky of the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General (DOJ-OIG) Cyber Investigations Office, and Special Agent in Charge Zachary Shroyer of the DOJ-OIG Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement.
DOJ-OIG investigated the case.
Senior Litigation Counsel Marco A. Palmieri of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section (PIN) and Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section prosecuted the case. Former PIN Trial Attorney Rebecca G. Ross provided significant assistance.
18:371 CONSPIRACY
(1s)
If two or more persons conspire either to commit any offense against the United States, or to defraud the United States, or any agency thereof in any manner or for any purpose, and one or more of such persons do any act to effect the object of the conspiracy, each shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
If, however, the offense, the commission of which is the object of the conspiracy, is a misdemeanor only, the punishment for such conspiracy shall not exceed the maximum punishment provided for such misdemeanor.
18:2261A,2 CYBERSTALKING
(2s)
Whoever—
(1) travels in interstate or foreign commerce or is present within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, or enters or leaves Indian country, with the intent to kill, injure, harass, intimidate, or place under surveillance with intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate another person, and in the course of, or as a result of, such travel or presence engages in conduct that—
(A) places that person in reasonable fear of the death of, or serious bodily injury to—
(i) that person;
(ii) an immediate family member (as defined in section 115) of that person;
(iii) a spouse or intimate partner of that person; or
(iv) the pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse of that person; or
(B) causes, attempts to cause, or would be reasonably expected to cause substantial emotional distress to a person described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of subparagraph (A); or
(2) with the intent to kill, injure, harass, intimidate, or place under surveillance with intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate another person, uses the mail, any interactive computer service or electronic communication service or electronic communication system of interstate commerce, or any other facility of interstate or foreign commerce to engage in a course of conduct that—
(A) places that person in reasonable fear of the death of or serious bodily injury to a person, a pet, a service animal, an emotional support animal, or a horse described in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (iv) of paragraph (1)(A); or
(B) causes, attempts to cause, or would be reasonably expected to cause substantial emotional distress to a person described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of paragraph (1)(A),
shall be punished as provided in section 2261(b) or section 2261B, as the case may be.
18:1621 PERJURY
(3)
Whoever—
(1) having taken an oath before a competent tribunal, officer, or person, in any case in which a law of the United States authorizes an oath to be administered, that he will testify, declare, depose, or certify truly, or that any written testimony, declaration, deposition, or certificate by him subscribed, is true, willfully and contrary to such oath states or subscribes any material matter which he does not believe to be true; or
(2) in any declaration, certificate, verification, or statement under penalty of perjury as permitted under section 1746 of title 28, United States Code, willfully subscribes as true any material matter which he does not believe to be true;
is guilty of perjury and shall, except as otherwise expressly provided by law, be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. This section is applicable whether the statement or subscription is made within or without the United States.
18:1519, 2 OBSTRUCTION
(4s)
Whoever knowingly alters, destroys, mutilates, conceals, covers up, falsifies, or makes a false entry in any record, document, or tangible object with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence the investigation or proper administration of any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States or any case filed under title 11, or in relation to or contemplation of any such matter or case, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both.
Outcome: Defendant is committed to the custody of the Bureau of Prisons for 121 MONTHS. This term consists of 60 months on each of Counts 1, 2 and 3 and 121 months on Count 4, all to be served concurrently. Supervised release for 3 years, to run concurrently under the terms and conditions of US Probation and Pretrial Services Office and Second Amended General Order 20-04. Special assessment of 400. All fines are waived
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Defendant's Experts:
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