Ángel del Villar, chief executive officer of Latin music company Del Records, was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for conducting business with a Mexican concert promoter linked to drug cartels.
The US Department of Justice announced on Friday (August 15) that US District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong imposed the sentence on Del Villar along with a $2 million fine.
His company, Del Entertainment, also received three years of probation and an $1.8 million penalty. The charges stemmed from violations of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, which bans Americans from doing business with designated drug traffickers.
The sentencing comes five months after Del Villar was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to do business with sanctioned people involved in drug trafficking, in violation of the Kingpin Act, and 10 other counts of violations still related to the Kingpin Act.
Del Records, launched in 2009 by Del Villar, claims to be “the most successful Latin independent entertainment label in Regional Mexican music today.”
As MBW previously reported in 2023, Del Records has enjoyed an unbroken distribution agreement with Universal Music Group‘s Ingrooves / Virgin Music Group over the past decade.
“Far from being an unwitting participant in a ‘gotcha’ crime, [Del Villar] orchestrated a sophisticated criminal scheme sustained over a lengthy period of time and involving myriad unlawful transactions.”
Department of Justice PRosecutors
The label attracted attention from South Korean entertainment giant HYBE, which reportedly considered acquiring the company in 2023. HYBE was reportedly particularly interested in Del Records artist Eslabón Armado‘s streaming numbers exceeding 40 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Armado has collaborated with Peso Pluma on Ella Baila Sola.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department said Del Villar continued working with Jesús Pérez Alvear, known as “Chucho,” even after the Treasury Department sanctioned the Guadalajara-based promoter in April 2018. Pérez controlled Gallistica Diamante, also known as Ticket Premier, and Treasury officials concluded he facilitated money laundering for the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación and Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization.
Prosecutors said in a sentencing memorandum cited by the DOJ: “Far from being an unwitting participant in a ‘gotcha’ crime, [Del Villar] orchestrated a sophisticated criminal scheme sustained over a lengthy period of time and involving myriad unlawful transactions.”
The Department noted that on April 19, 2018, FBI agents warned “a well-known musician” about Pérez’s sanctions designation, telling him that performing at Pérez-promoted concerts was illegal. However, nine days later, the same artist performed at a concert organized by Pérez in Aguascalientes, Mexico, with Del Villar’s credit card paying for a private jet from Van Nuys Airport, the Justice Department said.
The DOJ added that the business relationship continued through 2019, with Del Villar arranging performances in cities including Mexicali and San José Iturbide, Guanajuato.
The case took a turn when Pérez was murdered in Mexico in December 2024 after pleading guilty to conspiracy charges.
Last week, officials from the US Treasury Department designated another artist connected to Del Villar’s businesses as a narcotics trafficker. Ricardo Hernández Medrano, who performs El Makabelico or Comando Exclusivo, allegedly used concerts and royalties to launder money for the Cartel del Noreste, formerly known as Los Zetas.
Co-defendant Luca Scalisi of West Hollywood pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in May and faces sentencing in October. The case is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice, targeting cartels and transnational criminal organizations.
The investigation involved the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
During del Villar’s trial earlier this year, Villar’s defense team attempted to shift blame to former Del Records employee Brian Gutiérrez, who they accused of working with the government to “manufacture a gotcha situation,” the Los Angeles Times reported in March.
Defense attorney Marissa Goldberg portrayed del Villar as an immigrant who had “accomplished the American dream” through his passion for Mexican regional music, according to the report.
“The defendants here chose to get into business with an individual they knew had ties to the CJNG and had been designated a narcotics trafficker under the Kingpin Act.”
US Atty. Joseph McNally (in March)
However, the jury rejected this defense strategy. Paul K. Schrieffer, an attorney representing Gutiérrez, said: “The truth is that Mr. Gutierrez is an honest person with a distinguished record who saw something illegal occurring at his work, blew the whistle on it, was fired, and then had his reputation damaged.”
The LA Times cited acting US Atty. Joseph McNally as saying: “The defendants here chose to get into business with an individual they knew had ties to the CJNG and had been designated a narcotics trafficker under the Kingpin Act.”
“Cartels and transnational criminal organizations cause immeasurable harm to our country. We are using every tool to eliminate these organizations and will prosecute those that do business with cartels.”
Music Business Worldwide