Former Torrance bail agent sentenced for kidnapping, extorting clients

A former Torrance police officer and bail agent has been sentenced to prison for a scheme in which he apprehended clients prior to their court appearances and threatened to take them to jail unless they paid him out of pocket.

Rehan Nazir, 51, has been sentenced to 27 years in prison after being found guilty earlier this year of 17 felony charges, including kidnapping, extortion and false imprisonment.

An investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the California Department of Insurance found that Nazir hired a group of bounty hunters to help him locate several people who posted their bonds and were released from jail prior to their next court date.

Nazir and his employees would apprehend people who were legally free from holding and threaten to take them back to jail unless they paid cash or handed over personal property.

In one instance, the bounty hunters broke into a home and detained multiple people at gunpoint as they searched for a person who had recently posted bail. The person was handcuffed and taken to Nazir’s office while the bounty hunters drove their family members to an ATM to withdraw cash in order to pay off the captors.

In other instances, Nazir accepted stolen credit cards and property in lieu of cash to let his illegally detained clients go, investigators said.

Investigators say Nazir also used his former police experience to convince law enforcement agencies that he had the legal authority to repossess the vehicles of those he had bailed out, even though there was no contract for collateral on record and the vehicles were in the possession of family members.

He also apparently threatened a family member of a client by having another person deliver “graphic photos of an officer-involved shooting in which he was personally involved.”

Nazir was previously terminated by the Torrance Police Department after the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office launched an investigation and determined he had submitted false information in a report.

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said Nazir’s sentencing reflects the state’s commitment to holding bail agents accountable if they break the law.

“I have worked to secure greater oversight of the bail industry to protect public safety, and I will continue to take necessary steps to ensure a safe and fair judicial process,” Lara said.

Two of Nazir’s hired guns have been convicted of false imprisonment as part of the investigation, while a third is awaiting sentencing.

The case was investigated by the L.A. County D.A.’s Office, who says his bail agent license expired back in June 2019.

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