Overview
- Federal prosecutors say Grillo, 77, was arrested on March 3 after an undercover operation and now faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
- Investigators allege he sought to have a former employee and a family member flown from Lancaster to Mexico to force a reduced settlement of her jury award.
- Meetings occurred over several months in Burbank at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center, where he allegedly discussed the plan using “documentary” as code.
- Prosecutors cite a $20,000 check mailed in February from an entity labeled “Animals Are People Too” with “Production” in the memo as evidence of the scheme.
- A cooperating witness showed Grillo a staged photo on March 3, after which he signed a $10,000 check before agents arrested him; DELTA Rescue remains in Chapter 11 while appealing the verdict, and an initial court appearance was set for March 5 in Los Angeles.