Bank Executive Assaults 209 Times Founder, Gets Battered 

Bank Executive Assaults 209 Times Founder, Gets Battered 

By Frank Gayaldo

STOCKTON- At a recent gathering of hundreds of movers and shakers of San Joaquin County, the peaceful night was interrupted when a bank executive assaulted Motecuzoma Sanchez, the creator of 209 Times, and paid an immediate price. 

Dozens of witnesses were present and after interviewing several of them, a picture of what transpired is clear. According to several witnesses whose stories independently corroborate each other, Sanchez was sitting at a VIP table for a charity event when Eddie Lira, the vice president of the BAC Bank  and the president of the San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, purposely went out of his way to sit at  Sanchez’s table despite having his own in the very back of the venue. At this point Lira began assailing Sanchez with insults about 209 Times, which turned into physical threats after Lira stood up and approached Sanchez as if to physically attack him; essentially assaulting him according to the California Penal Code. At that point several men stepped in to intervene including an armed security guard who had to physically escort Lira away from Sanchez and his table. 

“I had no idea who the guy was. I never met him, but it was clear he was mad about Carlos and Edith Villapudua and Jesus Andrade losing their elections and Brando Villapudua being exposed that he was accused as a child molester by his own relative. I was surprised to find out he was a bank executive based on his conduct and extreme behavior,” said Sanchez. 

Surprisingly, Lira wasn’t kicked out of the event and approximately twenty minutes later according to dozens of witnesses, he attempted to assault Sanchez again, leaving his table and rushing some twenty yards towards him. At this point two others at the table with Sanchez got up to intercept Lira in an attempt to stop any assault and diffuse the situation. A third individual also stepped in from another table to create a barrier between Lira and Sanchez. Lira, according to multiple witnesses was extremely agitated, cussing and hurling insults and acting in a threatening manner. He then made a move to step around the three individuals standing between him and Sanchez to apparently attack Sanchez. 

At that point everyone agrees, Sanchez hit Eddie Lira in the face, knocking him back some 10 feet where he landed on top of a table of steak dinners, spilling everyone’s wine and even destroying one man’s cell phone. The person whose cell phone was destroyed also states that Lira had came to his table earlier trying to intimidate everyone for “being friends with Motec.” 

What everyone was unclear on was how many times Sanchez hit Lira. Some people were so shocked that they had the impression Sanchez hit Lira with a two or three piece combination, but most people agreed they saw one right cross, which Sanchez confirmed. “I just wanted to stop his advance and protect myself. Thankfully for him, several people stepped in and physically restrained  him as he was making a third attempt to attack me because that’s when he would have really gotten hurt. The fact that he got hit by me means he was too close to me. You don’t get to publicly threaten me with violence then come towards me a second time without being taught a lesson about who and what I am,” said Sanchez.  

We reached out to Lira for a statement as well. On March 11, 2024 at 11:59am I initiated a call with Eddie Lira.  (Prior to that I sent him a text message, which he ignored.) We spoke for 37 minutes. Although Lira expressed that he did not trust me or 209 Times, and was reluctant to give a quote, he did express he would be willing to meet with Sanchez and I in person. Lira said he would bring a representative with him, but hadn’t yet decided who that would be with. 

Lira said that he made a joke, and that Motec “acted like a thug”, and that it was Motec, along with at least four other people he did not recognize, who approached his table after he made the joke, a statement that is disputed by everyone including the event organizer. Lira was unwilling to provide a written statement and said his statements were only “off the record.” 

Lira stated that although he could not speak for “the bank” there would be a high likelihood that they would sue if they were mentioned in a future article about this situation as they “have nothing to do with it”.  I asked if he had spoken with Bill Trezza about this since Trezza is a board member of BAC bank and close associate of Fritz Grupe, who has allegedly made several statements against Sanchez for 209 Times’ reporting on him and his involvement in SUSD. He responded “yes”.  Lira proceeded to explain Trezza is “no longer with the bank”.  I asked if Trezza is still on the Board of Directors and Mr. Lira said “yes”.  Lira was unwilling to share how Bill Trezza felt about the situation.  Don Lenz is also a board member over Lira at BAC Bank. Lenz is married to Stockton City Councilmember Susan Lenz who is also not a fan of Motec’s and allegedly fired Brando’s ex girlfriend from her tax accounting firm after she was seen speaking to Motec and myself, which was then reported to Susan who referenced it in a message to the woman. 

Lira denied being tased by security, which was a rumor going around, but did acknowledge he was escorted out of the event by security.  He claimed he did not hit Motec nor anyone else. I asked if he was upset with 209 Times because of our reporting on Carlos, Brando or SUSD.  He denied that was a motive. 

I told him that I would call him again the next day before publishing an article and that I would talk to Motec about his proposal to meet.  I asked Lira if he would be willing to just meet with me alone at his office or anywhere else, and he declined. I asked Lira if Motec or I should be concerned about seeing him in public, and he said that was a weird question. 

The event organizer I spoke to said that during both incidents, “Sanchez was polite and respectful. He was very cooperative”. On the other hand he stated that, “Lira’s behavior was unacceptable and he had to be forcibly removed from the premises.” 

Shortly after I reached out to Lira for a statement, I unexpectedly ran into both Eddie Lira and Bill Trezza having a conversation over lunch at an upscale restaurant in Lodi. Neither tried to speak to me, but Lira made it a point to brow beat me as he was leaving the restaurant as if he wanted to have a confrontation with me. The next day after he and Trezza were spotted together, Sanchez was contacted by a police officer over the phone stating that Lira had filed a complaint claiming Sanchez assaulted him. “There were dozens of witnesses who saw what happened so Eddie ‘Liar’ can make up whatever lies he wants. I have photos and video evidence so he can also get embarrassed in court just like his chomie Brando did,” said Sanchez. 

It didn’t take long for the news to spread from the upper echelons of Stockton politics to the streets, even though 209 Times did not immediately report on the altercation. Literally everyone we interviewed who witnessed it (other than Lira) agreed Lira was the aggressor. Sanchez told me he suspects that Eddie may not have acted of his own accord, but may have been encouraged and emboldened by the support of others behind him who have powerful influence and positions in Stockton. 

Sanchez said while he’s not pleased with how events turned out and only got to eat half of his steak, he’s also not going to let pressure dissuade him from his mission, “I don’t go looking for trouble, but when it comes my way I’m going to deal with it. No one is going to silence or intimidate me. I’m a kind and peaceful man. But if you’re disrespectful and threatening towards me, kind and peaceful is not what you’re going to remember about me.”