A federal judge on Friday agreed to hear arguments for why he should allow one charge to be dropped against former Anaheim Chamber of Commerce CEO Todd Ament, who cooperated as a key witness in the FBI’s investigation into former Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu and the sale of Angel Stadium.
It’s been three years since Ament agreed to plead guilty to four charges — his sentencing and the answer to whether he will serve any federal prison time have long been delayed. Ament’s charges were brought after prosecutors said he defrauded a cannabis company, lied on his tax returns and to a bank when buying a home, and used a COVID-relief business loan for his consulting company on personal expenses.
Ament was scheduled to be sentenced on Friday, but both prosecutors and defense attorneys walked into the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles asking to delay.
U.S. District Court Judge Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha agreed on Friday to hold a hearing on Oct. 22 for why the fraud charge for defrauding a local cannabis company should be dropped.
Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Rabbani said the government is OK with dropping the first wire fraud charge “based on changes in governing law for wire fraud.”
Prosecutors and Ament’s attorney have told Aenlle-Rocha that they are in negotiations for Ament to get a new plea deal. Aenlle-Rocha agreed to postpone his sentencing until Nov. 14, “for now.”
“We’ll see what happens,” Aenlle-Rocha said. He expressed frustration during the hearing that Ament’s sentencing had been postponed at least six times already.
Ament pleaded guilty in 2022 to two counts of wire fraud, one count of making a false statement to a financial institution and one count of submitting a false tax return.
Daniel C. Silva, an attorney for Ament, said the conversation regarding a change in Ament’s plea deal is “much broader” than just dropping the wire fraud charge, “and is still ongoing.” So far though, Rabbani said the government is OK dropping one charge only.
Ament did not speak during the hearing, nor after.
Ament had been a close political adviser to Sidhu and was a central member of a self-described “cabal” of business and political leaders in Anaheim who FBI investigators said in a 2022 affidavit appeared to exert “significant influence over the city.”
The former chamber head ended up wearing a wire for the FBI that secretly recorded Sidhu saying he hoped to elicit a $1 million campaign contribution for his reelection from the Angels once the sale of Angel Stadium was complete. The Angels have not been accused of any wrongdoing by federal prosecutors.
Aenlle-Rocha also criticized that attorneys on both sides have been asking for several filings in the case to be sealed or redacted and noted, “The public has a right of access to our files.”
The Anaheim Chamber of Commerce is arguing that it is a victim of Ament’s actions and is asking for him to pay the organization restitution. But their ask for restitution comes from the charge that now may be dropped.
“Ament exploited the chamber’s reputation, acted outside staff and board oversight and abused his CEO authority, all to enrich himself,” the chamber’s attorney wrote in a filing posted Tuesday.
The chamber wants the court to order Ament to pay $264,000, though in 2022 it had said Ament caused the business organization to lose a total of at least $1.6 million. While prosecutors said they don’t believe the chamber was a victim in the case, Aenlle-Rocha asked that they be considered as a potential victim.
On Friday, former Democratic political consultant Melahat Rafiei was sentenced to six months in prison. She, too, was accused of defrauding a local cannabis company. She later became a witness against Ament and Sidhu.