A long-standing case involving Mugshots.com has recently reached a resolution following a plea agreement among the defendants. In 2018, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced charges of extortion, money laundering, and identity theft against four individuals associated with the site. The allegations centered on their operation of a pay-for-removal scheme where mugshots of arrested individuals were published before convictions, subsequently offering to remove the images for a fee.

One of the defendants, David Usdan, had previously entered a plea deal in 2022, admitting to being an accessory after the fact. Recently, on May 5, 2025, the other three defendants—Sahar Sarid, Kishore Bhavnanie, and Thomas Keesee—were sentenced after pleading nolo contendere to charges of identity theft and attempted extortion. Each received one year of summary probation and was ordered to pay a portion of a total of $78,000 in restitution along with court fees. The court credited them with time served from 2018, meaning they will not face additional jail time.

Sahar Sarid was previously known as a domain name investor at the time of his arrest. Notably, Mugshots.com currently displays a notice asserting its status as a news organization, claiming it does not accept payments for the removal of mugshots.

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