Los Retros Frontman Charged With Child Abuse Felonies

Mauricio “Mauri” Tapia, the frontman of Southern California indie band Los Retros, has been charged with four felony counts of unlawful acts with a child under the age of 10, according to court records filed in Ventura County Superior Court. The charges mark a shocking fall for one of indie rock’s fastest-rising acts.

Tapia, 26, was arrested on October 8 and charged on October 12. He has not entered a plea, and his bail was set at $3 million. Prosecutors have also filed special allegations claiming the alleged victim was especially vulnerable and that Tapia abused a position of trust. His next court appearance is scheduled for October 22.

Stones Throw severs ties

Stones Throw Records, the independent Los Angeles label behind the project, announced it was cutting ties with Tapia after learning of the allegations. “Yesterday we learned of extremely serious and disturbing allegations against Mauri Tapia, professionally known as Los Retros,” the label said in a statement. “In light of this information, we are taking steps to disassociate ourselves from Tapia and his work. We take these allegations extremely seriously and will continue to assess the situation as more information becomes available.”

The label clarified that Tapia’s set at its Stones Throw 30 anniversary festival in Los Angeles had already been cancelled before it became aware of the circumstances, separating the earlier booking decision from its latest move. Los Retros had built more than 2.8 million monthly Spotify listeners, with “Someone To Spend Time With” surpassing 270 million streams.

A sudden unraveling

The arrest came just before Los Retros was due to appear at the label’s milestone festival in Highland Park, and the band was quietly removed from the lineup for what organizers called “unforeseen circumstances.” Tapia had launched the project in the mid-2010s and become a prominent figure in a wave of Latino acts drawing from vintage Mexican ballads, American oldies and modern indie rock, performing at Coachella in April and building a devoted following on both sides of the border.

The criminal case in Ventura County will now determine the project’s future, with the next hearing on October 22. The label has not explained what the separation means for the existing Los Retros catalog.