Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Undersheriff Paul Tanaka was convicted in connection with a sweeping, federal civil rights investigation of corruption and deputy-on-inmate abuse in the jail system.
- Tanaka was found guilty by a federal jury of obstruction of justice & conspiracy to obstruct justice
- The jury deliberated for approximately three hours or less over two days before reaching their verdict
- 57-year-old Tanaka was accused of leading a conspiracy to hide jail inmate Anthony Brown after the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department learned that Brown was an informant for the FBI
- The informant was allegedly reporting to the feds about alleged corruption and excessive force against inmates inside the Men’ Central Jail
- Tanaka was the ninth sheriff’s official convicted of criminal conduct based on the circumstances surrounding the hiding of inmate-informer Anthony Brown, a scheme that involved witness tampering
- Tanaka was sentenced to five years in federal prison, two years of supervised released after he gets out of prison and a $7,500 fine
- He surrendered to prison as ordered by the court on August 1, 2016