Waiel Anton, Corruption and Obstruction of Justice, California 2023

Corruption Scandal Rocks San Diego Sheriff’s Department

San Diego, CA – In a stunning development, self-described ‘consultant’ Waiel ‘Will’ Anton was sentenced to 12 months and a day in federal prison for years of corrupt conduct.

According to court records, Anton, a close associate of former Sheriff’s Captain M. Marco Garmo, pleaded guilty in July to two counts of obstruction of justice. In his plea agreement, Anton admitted collecting cash payments from the operator of several unlicensed marijuana dispensaries in exchange for law enforcement information about impending searches.

Anton’s corruption scheme involved providing advance warning of planned Sheriff’s Department searches of the operator’s business locations, information which Anton received from Garmo. The pair’s text messages revealed a brazen and calculating scheme, with Anton collecting a fee from the operator of the lucrative ‘Empire’ dispensary in Spring Valley.

As part of his plea agreement, Anton admitted making an illegal $100 cash payment to a county clerk who ensured favored treatment for his CCW clients. Garmo had admitted in his own plea papers that his role in Anton’s scheme was to refer CCW ‘consulting’ clients to Anton in exchange for kickbacks of $100 apiece.

In February 2019, Anton met with an undercover agent from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), whom Garmo had referred to Anton after selling the undercover agent a pair of off-roster handguns. In exchange for a $1,000 cash payment, Anton called the Licensing clerk whom he had paid off and secured a two-week CCW appointment for the agent.

Mandatory Facts:

Defendant: Waiel ‘Will’ Anton

Criminal Charges: Obstruction of Justice

City and State: San Diego, CA

Date: July 2023

Sentence: 12 months and a day in federal prison

Dollar Amounts: $100 (cash payment to county clerk), $1,000 (cash payment to Anton)

Related Federal Cases