A former member of the Compton City Council has admitted to paying $70,000 in bribes to a Baldwin Park city councilman to secure votes and support for commercial marijuana permits. The individual also pleaded guilty to federal charges related to evading income taxes by failing to file returns over four years and not reporting more than $500,000 in income.
Isaac Jacob Galvan, 38, from Compton, entered his plea on one count of bribery involving programs receiving federal funds and one count of tax evasion. He is currently out on a $10,000 bond and has agreed to pay $323,557 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.
According to court documents, Baldwin Park began allowing marijuana cultivation and distribution within its boundaries in June 2017. Following this policy change, then-city councilman Ricardo Pacheco started soliciting bribes from businesses interested in obtaining marijuana development agreements and related permits. In exchange for payments, Pacheco agreed to use his influence as a public official to assist these companies with their permit applications.
Galvan offered consulting services to W&F International Corp., an import-export business based in Diamond Bar that sought a marijuana permit in Baldwin Park. After being retained by W&F International Corp., Galvan facilitated the payment of $70,000 in bribes from Yichang Bai—the owner of W&F—to Pacheco. Bai has pleaded not guilty and is set for trial in February 2026.
In return for the bribes, Pacheco supported W&F’s applications by voting for their marijuana permit approvals during city council meetings held in June and July 2018. He later voted for W&F’s request to relocate operations.
To hide the illegal payments, Galvan and Bai used methods such as collecting checks from third parties with blank payee lines before passing them along as bribes. After votes were cast approving W&F’s relocation bid, Pacheco asked Galvan for additional money from W&F toward his legal defense fund; Bai provided seven checks totaling $20,000 through different bank accounts unrelated directly to him or his company.
Galvan also admitted he did not file individual tax returns between 2017 and 2020. He concealed ownership of I&I LLC—a shell company used both for soliciting bribes on behalf of public officials and making illicit payments—and directed that some earnings be paid through intermediaries who covered his personal expenses like rent.
Overall, authorities determined Galvan failed to report about $560,525 in income over four years—resulting in an estimated loss of $115,816 for the U.S. Treasury.
United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II scheduled sentencing for June 8, 2026; Galvan could face up to ten years’ imprisonment on the bribery charge and five years on the tax charge.
Pacheco previously pleaded guilty in June 2020 after accepting tens of thousands of dollars—including cash—from an undercover FBI operation tied to police contract negotiations with Baldwin Park Police Association. His sentencing is set for March 30, 2026; he has agreed under a plea deal to cooperate with ongoing investigations into corruption.
The case remains under investigation by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation teams. Prosecutors Thomas F. Rybarczyk, Michael J. Morse, and Kedar S. Bhatia are handling proceedings.
Authorities encourage anyone with information about this or other public corruption matters to contact the FBI via its electronic tip form at https://tips.fbi.gov or call (800) CALL-FBI.
