SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A San Diego business owner who was convicted of fraud and had her prison sentence commuted by former President Donald Trump has been arrested again, indicted for a scheme nearly identical to the one that sent her to prison in the first place.
According to court documents obtained by ABC 10News, federal prosecutors allege that Adriana Camberos and her brother Andres purchased products at a deep discount from manufacturers to be resold in Mexico, where prices are much lower.
However, the indictment alleges that the Camberos' would then remove the Spanish-language labels and replace them with English labels, selling them in the United States, instead, and pocketing a much greater profit.
That was also at the core of the first case against Camberos, which ABC 10News first covered in 2015. She and several co-conspirators were accused of diverting 5-Hour Energy drink bottles acquired for resale in Mexico in the United States, with counterfeit labels attached. They also bottled their own energy drink concoction and affixed 5-Hour Energy labels on them.
Camberos was found guilty in 2016 and after losing in the appeals process, reported to prison in 2019.
Camberos was about halfway through her sentence when the remainder was commuted by Trump on his last day in office, an act that was overshadowed by the pardons granted to higher-profile convicts, including former Trump Campaign strategist Steve Bannon and former San Diego Congressman Duke Cunningham, who went to prison after pleading guilty to charges involving bribery and tax evasion.
The new indictment against Camberos cites a wire transfer March 2, 2021, which means prosecutors are accusing her of launching into a new fraud scheme within six weeks of having her sentence commuted.
ABC 10News reached out to an attorney who has represented Camberos, but did not hear back.
