Photo Credit: Ángel del Villar for Del Records

A federal judge has granted Del Records founder José Ángel del Villar’s request to remain out on bond while he appeals his four-year prison sentence.

We covered that sentence when it was handed down in August, following del Villar’s 2022 arrest on drug trafficking charges and then, on the heels of a nine-day trial, the guilty verdict returned by a jury in March 2025.

Though the Latin music mogul faced possible decades behind bars for violating the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, he ultimately received the mentioned four-year sentence.

Meanwhile, del Villar – whose son is stepping up as Del Records CEO – promptly kicked off the appeal in August and had been scheduled to surrender to a federal prison on December 1st.

(Specifically, Andrew del Villar took the company reins earlier in November; worth reiterating as well is that Ángel, in addressing the guilty verdict, admitted he’d “put [his] business and priorities on hold” for seven years beforehand.)

Now, however, this surrender deadline is no more; Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong just recently granted del Villar’s motion for release pending appeal.

As the appeal process unfolds, the exec “shall remain out on bond on the same terms and conditions,” according to the relevant order.

Additionally, the involved parties must file a joint status report every 90 days, besides submitting another joint report “regarding further proceedings” within one week following the appeal’s resolution.

Said resolution doesn’t seem like it’s in the near-term cards: Under a newly approved deadline extension, del Villar has until December 22nd to file his opening brief, with a retort due January 21st.

From there, the Peso Pluma producer will have up to three weeks to provide an optional reply brief if so inclined, the docket shows.

Closing with a quick look at the status of Del Records’ operations, the above-described legal troubles and leadership change don’t appear to have disrupted the company’s release schedule. During the past month alone, signed acts including Andi Luan and Lenin Ramírez have put out projects via the label, which is closing in on 10 billion YouTube views.