Highlights
- Sameer Mardanzai, 28, was arrested in Surprise on Aug. 20, 2026, on three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and two counts of sexual conduct with a minor.
- The investigation began in May 2025 after a father reported his 15-year-old daughter was in a sexual relationship with a man she met through Mardanzai's Instagram account '@azhousepartys.'
- Mardanzai is held on a $500,000 bond; Surprise Police believe additional victims exist across Phoenix, Glendale, and Gilbert.
- Anyone with information can contact Surprise Police at 623-222-TIPS or crimetips@surpriseaz.gov.
Surprise Police arrested Sameer Mardanzai, 28, on Wednesday on five felony counts tied to the sexual exploitation of a teenage girl he allegedly recruited through a social-media party-promotion account, according to court documents reviewed by Arizona's Family.
The investigation began in May 2025 when a father reported to Surprise Police that his 15-year-old daughter was involved in a sexual relationship with a man she met through social media. The father told police he found sexually explicit texts and Instagram messages on a phone. The teen told detectives she met Mardanzai four months earlier at a party he promoted on social media, and the relationship escalated to sexual conduct. She also accused Mardanzai of giving her a sexually transmitted disease.
Court documents show Mardanzai ran an Instagram account called "@azhousepartys" that he used to promote the parties. Detectives obtained data from the account through Meta, the platform's parent company, which reportedly included sexual messages and videos exchanged between the account and the teen's account.
Mardanzai was arrested in Scottsdale in February for an unrelated drug crime, at which point Surprise Police seized his phone. He was released from jail on Aug. 16; Surprise Police arrested him three days later.
In an interview with detectives, Mardanzai denied running the Instagram account and denied knowing the victim. When police told him of the videos they found, he reportedly replied "that's what it is, man," and told officers to arrest him while denying having sexual relations with minors. Investigators said Mardanzai is known to promote parties and provide underage people with drugs and alcohol, though he denied being a party promoter.
Detectives found that Mardanzai has been investigated for similar sexual crimes involving minors in Phoenix, Glendale, and Gilbert. He is charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and two counts of sexual conduct with a minor, and is being held on a $500,000 bond.
The investigation is active. Surprise Police believe additional victims exist in related cases outside of Surprise and ask anyone with information to call 623-222-TIPS (8477) or email crimetips@surpriseaz.gov.
Sources
Every factual claim in this article traces to one of the sources below. See how we work for the editorial process.
- AZ Family (3TV/CBS5) retrieved 21/08/2026 01:55
Authored by The Scottsdale Signal. Drafted by AI from primary-source material under our beat-specific editorial guides; reviewed by humans before publish under our five-gate process. Sources retrieved at 21/08/2026 01:55. Every claim traces to a source.
