The U.S. Attorney‘s Office (“USAO”) for the Central District of California recently announced that José Ángel Del Villar, the Chief Executive Officer of Latin music conglomerate Del Records and related talent agency Del Entertainment Inc., was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for conspiring to conduct business with a concert promoter with alleged ties to Mexican drug cartels. Del Villar was sentenced on August 15, 2025 for conducting business with Jesús Pérez Alvea , a Guadalajara-based music promoter who was sanctioned by the United States in 2018 under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (“Kingpin Act”) for allegedly laundering funds for the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization. Del Villar’s sentence also included the payment of a $2 million fine. Co-defendant Del Entertainment was concurrently sentenced to three years’ probation and fined $1.8 million.
The sentence comes approximately 5 months after a federal jury found Del Villar and Del Entertainment guilty of one count of conspiracy to transact in property of specially designated narcotics traffickers in violation of Kingpin Act and 10 counts of violating the Kingpin Act. According to federal prosecutors, Del Villar and Del Entertainment willfully worked with Pérez and continued to enable a well-known Del Entertainment artist to perform throughout Mexico on multiple occasions in 2018 and 2019, at concerts in which Perez and Del Entertainment had a financial interest. According to court documents, the defendants continued to arrange for the unnamed artist to perform at concerts promoted by Pérez after FBI agents directly informed the musician in April 2018 that conducting business with Pérez was prohibited by the Kingpin Act.
According to the USAO, co-defendants Luca Scalisi and Pérez each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transact in property of specially designated narcotics traffickers. Scalisi currently awaits sentencing, which is currently scheduled for October 22, 2025. Federal prosecutors terminated their case against Pérez after he was reportedly murdered in Mexico in December 2024.
USAO Central District of CA Press Release | Judgment (Del Villar) | Judgment (Del Entertainment) | Plea Agreement (Pérez) | Order Dismissing Indictment of Pérez | Plea Agreement (Scalisi)