Overview
- Mendoza, 56, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and illegal reentry before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe.
- He was ordered to pay $789,218.94 in restitution and to forfeit $1.5 million, including his interest in a Downey, California home bought with illicit proceeds.
- IcomTech marketed crypto mining and trading products but functioned as an MLM-style Ponzi scheme that promised guaranteed daily returns and paid old investors with new deposits.
- Promoters targeted working-class, Spanish-speaking communities with flashy in-person events, and Mendoza hosted cash-collection pitches at his Los Angeles–area restaurant.
- As the scheme faltered, IcomTech sold a proprietary token called “Icoms” that proved worthless, and Mendoza later promoted at least three other crypto Ponzi schemes as co-conspirators were sentenced separately.