Judicial records link Don Stockwell to Edwin “Sobrino” Vargas in investments

Event producer Don Stockwell and suspected drug trafficker Edwin Vargas, known as “Sobrino,” maintained a direct line of communication to coordinate capital investments for concerts, according to judicial records.

Direct Coordination of Event Capital

Evidence from a September 14, 2023, videocall shows Stockwell and Vargas negotiating a $250,000 investment for an event. In the recording, Stockwell expressed a preference for dealing directly with Vargas rather than through intermediaries, stating, “I prefer to do it with you and not have to look for it through a third party.” Vargas responded by emphasizing the need for mutual respect and professional understanding between them.

Investigators concluded that this interaction indicates a relationship based on established trust rather than a circumstantial connection. The OIJ noted that Stockwell sought to bypass Hugo Barboza, another producer who acted as a primary financial intermediary for the group. Barboza was also taken into custody during the operation known as “Éxodo” on suspicion of money laundering.

Financial Tracking via Digital Platforms

The flow of funds between Vargas and Stockwell was documented through WhatsApp and Snapchat, where Stockwell provided financial breakdowns to Barboza with instructions to relay them to Vargas. In one message, Stockwell detailed the profit margins for concerts featuring Ednita Nazario and Ricardo Montaner held in late 2023. He explicitly linked these calculations to Vargas, writing, “To be clear, the original $150,000 is returned, which includes the profit from Ednita plus the net profit from Montaner.”

The investigation identified a multi-channel approach to these financial returns, involving cash transactions, traditional banking, and cryptocurrency. In March 2024, after Barboza informed Stockwell that a situation was “getting complicated,” Stockwell sent a photograph of 20,000 euros in cash. Following a phone call, he requested a virtual wallet address to transfer the equivalent of $200,000 in Bitcoin, plus a 4% fee.

Concealment Methods for Investor Lists

For the October 2024 concert by the group Aventura, investigators recovered a list of investors where Vargas García was hidden under the pseudonym “familiar.” The document indicates an investment of $300,000, with a projected return of 12.5% of total profits. The communications also included informal exchanges between the parties, with Barboza using song-related jargon to discuss the injection of funds into the Aventura event.

Other records indicate that the collaboration extended to earlier events, such as the 2023 Flow Fest. In these instances, Barboza served as the conduit for information regarding the economic structure of the shows. The OIJ investigation highlights that Stockwell’s role included managing these events and coordinating media appearances to promote them, all while relying on capital provided by the group linked to Vargas.