YouTuber Jake Paul Arrest : $2M tax bill after FBI agents seized high powered weapons from his $6.9M LA mansion in connection to his mall riot arrest

The State August 6, 2020 0 Comments arizona mall looting, Armani Izadi, FBI, Jake Paul, Jake Paul arrest, los angeles, mall riot, raid, Scottsdale, SWAT, youtube star, Youtuber

Jake Paul’s neighbors said Wednesday they hear ‘mysterious explosions in the night’ after the FBI seized multiple high-powered firearms from the YouTube star’s Los Angeles mansion.

Heavily-armed agents dressed in tactical gear descended on the $6.9million Calabasas property in military vehicles around 6am local time after executing a sealed search warrant in connection to his arrest during an Arizona mall looting in May.

One neighbor told CBSLA he hears ‘big loud explosions at night’, adding: ‘These are just mysterious, things in the night.’ Aerial footage of the raid, taken by ABC7, showed law enforcement officers walking out of Paul’s sprawling home with several rifles in hand, before loading them onto police vehicles as apparent evidence.

A second FBI raid was also conducted at a separate property belonging to fellow social media personality and friend of Paul, Armani Izadi in Las Vegas, the outlet said. Izadi was also arrested during the looting in Arizona.

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In June, Paul was charged with criminal trespass and unlawful assembly by authorities in Scottsdale, Arizona who say they were sent ‘hundreds of tips’ claiming Paul was ‘a participant in the riot’ at the mall which broke out following protests in the days after George Floyd’s death.

The case against both Paul and Izadi was later dropped by the City Attorney ahead of Wednesday’s raid by the FBI.

In a statement the Scottsdale Police Department said: ‘It is in the best interest of the community to dismiss misdemeanor charges without prejudice so that a federal criminal investigation can be completed. Scottsdale retains the option to refile charges depending on the outcome of the federal investigation.’

Paul is also said to have a $2 million unpaid federal tax bill from July last year, according to The Sun.

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Law enforcement officers were seen walking out of Jake Paul’s Calabasas mansion on Wednesday with multiple firearms in hand

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Authorities were seen loading the weapons onto the back of a police vehicle as apparent evidence

Footage showed what appeared to be a high-powered rifle resting against the star’s hot tub in the backyard that appears in many of his recent YouTube videos

Aerial footage of the raid, taken by ABC7, showed law enforcement officers walking out of the sprawling Calabasas mansion with several rifles in hand, before loading them onto police vehicles as apparent evidence

Jake Paul’s Calabasas home was searched by FBI agents early Wednesday morning. Above, two agents clad in tactical gear are seen at the gates of the mansion during the operation

Several federal agents dressed in tactical gear arrived in armored vehicles after serving the YouTube star with a search warrant

Similar scenes unfolded at the Graffiti Mansion owned by Izadi, where heavily-armed units were seen descending on the home

A second FBI raid was also conducted at a separate property belonging to fellow social media personality and friend of Paul, Armani Izadi in Las Vegas, the outlet said. Izadi, pictured with Jake, was also arrested during the looting in Arizona

Jake Paul, 23, rose to fame alongside his brother Logan Paul (right with his brother) 25, on now defunct-video app Vine before transitioning to YouTube where he now has more than 20million users who subscribe to his reckless and adventurous videos. A second FBI raid was also conducted at a separate property belonging to fellow social media personality and friend of Paul, Armani Izadi in Las Vegas, the outlet said. Izadi, left with Jake, was also arrested during the looting in Arizona

TIME OF JAKE PAUL’S ARREST AND RESULTING FBI RAID

May 30: Looting at the Scottsdale Fashion Square mall, Arizona

May 31: Paul tried to distance himself from the situation in a statement, saying he was in no way involved in any looting or vandalism

June 4: Scottsdale, Arizona authorities charged the 23-year-old internet star with criminal trespass and unlawful assembly – both misdemeanors

August 5: Paul’s home in LA and Armani Izadi in Las Vegas are both raided by the FBI

Charges are dropped against both men by Scottsdale police; they remain the subjects of a federal investigation

In one shot from the scene in LA, a long-barreled gun was spotted in the backyard resting against a hot tub that has been featured in many of the social media influencer’s recent YouTube videos.

At least 20 federal agents were seen riding in on a procession of military vehicles, including an armored truck during the operation. Several U.S. government marked cars were also spotted in the vicinity.

Authorities refused to comment on the nature of the raid since the warrant has been sealed by a judge, but confirmed they did not plan to make any arrests in the search. A source told TMZ: ‘The FBI is investigating allegations of criminal acts surrounding the incident at Scottsdale Fashion Square in May, 2020.’

In a statement shared on social media, the City of Calabasas confirmed that it was Paul’s home that was being raided by the FBI, which was using the city hall parking lot as a staging area.

The 23-year-old YouTuber however, had been out of state during the search operation, his attorney Richard Schonfeld told TMZ. The lawyer said they plan to cooperate with the investigation.

Jake, known for posting reckless and adventurous videos on YouTube, faced widespread backlash after cell phone footage shared by Paul’s videographer Andrew Blue in May showed the social media star at the Arizona mall at the time of the looting.

He is first spotted outside the Fashion Square Mall as protesters appear to shoot fireworks at the building’s entrance. Later, Paul films a group of police officers stationed at the mall to curb any looting or violence amid the George Floyd protests.

‘Bunch of f****** idiots, bro,’ he says. The caption on the video reads ‘American is in ruins.’

He claims to have walked on a sidewalk near the officers who allegedly teargassed him.

‘Literally I walked right here, right up to there. these f****** idiots teargassed me. I ain’t doing s***, bro. Look at them pointing guns at me,’ Paul said.

‘Look at them. Twenty guns on me. Twenty guns on me right now,’ he adds before saying ‘Rest in Peace, George Floyd’ and flipping his middle finger at the officers.

Paul later tried to distance himself from the situation in a statement saying he was in no way involved in any looting or vandalism. He said that he and friends went to the mall to attend a protest against the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis.

They instead found people engaged in looting and property damage that included shattered windows of offices and stores, Paul said, adding that he didn’t participate in that activity.

‘That’s the way it looked on camera. However that isn’t the case,’ he said.

Paul said he kept walking in the mall area despite encountering the criminal activity because he still wanted to find the protest.

He said it was upsetting that social media posts accused him of vandalism. ‘I’m above that. I don’t’need to vanadalize. I don’t need to loot and I know it’s not the way forward.’

Paul said he was an ‘easy target’ and that he has learned a lesson about entering situations that could pose problems. ‘But it’s not going to stop me from doing what I need to do.’

Criminal activity: Jake Paul has been charged with two misdemeanor crimes after he was seen at an Arizona mall that was being looted

Jake Paul was charged with two misdemeanor crimes after he was seen at an Arizona mall that was being looted in JuneYouTuber Jake Paul seen out during Floyd protests in ArizonaLoaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00PreviousPlaySkipMuteCurrent Time0:00/Duration Time2:03FullscreenNeed Text

At least 20 federal agents hanging off military trucks were seen on the 23500 block of Parksouth Street during the mystery operation

The FBI refused to comment on the nature of the search since the warrant has been sealed by a judge. Pictured: FBI units cling on to government vehicles while leaving Paul’s property

The raid was reported to have lasted an hour and half. It is unknown exactly what was seized from the house

Footage showed at least one person being taken away in handcuffs. Sources told TMZ the raid was related to the investigation at Paul’s home

They also reportedly confirmed the probe is connected to ‘allegations of criminal acts’ surrounding an incident involving Paul at Scottsdale Fashion Square in Arizona in May

Sources told the LA Times a SWAT team had been deployed to gain entry into the viral star’s house.

The armed units are usually called in to situations that are deemed high-risk, such as at properties where weapons are believed to be present.

Agents were reported to have searched the 15,000 square-foot home for about an hour and half.

‘The FBI is executing a federal search warrant at a residence in Calabasas in connection with an ongoing investigation,’ a bureau spokesperson said.

‘The affidavit in support of the search warrant is sealed and we are, therefore, prohibited from commenting as to the nature of the investigation.’

Similar scenes unfolded at the Graffiti Mansion owned by Izadi, where heavily-armed units were seen descending on the home. Footage showed at least one person being taken away in handcuffs.

Sources told TMZ the raid was related to the investigation at Paul’s home.

DailyMail.com has contacted Paul’s reps for comment.

Paul rose to fame alongside his brother Logan Paul, 25, on now defunct-video app Vine before transitioning to YouTube, where he now has over 20 million subscribers to his channel which features stunts, pranks, stories from his personal life, and more recently music videos.

He most recently drew backlash last month for blatantly flouting social distancing guidelines as COVID-19 cases spiked in California, by throwing a massive party at the mansion.

Calabasas mayor Alicia Weintraub expressed ‘outrage’ over the ‘outrageous gathering’ in which dozens of people without masks drank and danced.

Paul later indicated to Insider last week that he would continue to do what he wants.

Videos emerged on social media shortly after the party, where revelers showed no concern for social distancing or wearing protective masks.

People were seen drinking, playing beer pong, and swinging off a construction backhoe at the gathering.

Revelers were both indoors and outdoors, crowded closely together without a mask in sight.

Calabasas mayor Alicia Weintraub was left outraged after learning of the party and says she’s looking into ‘all options’ for penalties for Paul.

Paul told Insider that he spoke to the mayor and ‘everything is cool,’ though he didn’t elaborate on what she said.

The mayor, meanwhile, said she didn’t speak to Paul at all, and only a representative for the the YouTuber. She said that possible fines would be issues in the future and the sheriff’s department would intervene.

But Paul didn’t say that would put an end to his wild bashes, and insisted that it wasn’t clear to him how he should be behaving.

‘I don’t know what to think of it, to be honest. I don’t think anyone really does,’ he said. ‘No one has answers, our leadership is failing us, and everyone kind of just doesn’t know what to do.

‘But I personally am not the type of person who’s gonna sit around and not live my life,’ he added. FBI Units seen leaving home of YouTuber Jake Paul after raidLoaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00PreviousPlaySkipMuteCurrent Time0:00/Duration Time2:46FullscreenNeed Text

The FBI said no arrests were planned in Wednesday’s search but it is unclear as to why the operation required heavily armed units

Paul was nowhere to be seen during the FBI raid on Wednesday

Several military vehicles were seen departing the mansion following the operation

Paul purchased the 15,000 square-ft mansion in Calabasas for a hefty $6.925million when he was 20 years old in 2017

Paul moved into the neighborhood in 2017 after his previous home in Beverly Grove had become the subject of noise complaints

Paul’s July 16 party was thrown in spite of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desperate plea for people to be wary of the virus.

His brother Logan Paul, another YouTube star, is also no stranger to controversy.

He came under fire in late December 2017 into early 2018 when he uploaded a vlog on his YouTube channel about a trip to Japan in which he visited a ‘suicide forest’ near Mount Fuji, a place where people were known take their own lives, and depicted a recently deceased corpse.

The video was removed from YouTube and Paul issued a public apology.