CFO of conservative global news media The Epoch Times Federal investigators arrested and charged him with leading a years-long scheme to launder at least $67 million in illegal funds. The prosecutor Monday.
Prosecutors allege the scheme involved cryptocurrency, tens of thousands of prepaid debit cards, fraudulent unemployment insurance payments and identity theft, leading to a significant increase in The Epoch Times’ reported annual revenue.
Weidong “Bill” Guan, 61, was indicted in U.S. District Court in Southern Manhattan on one count of money laundering conspiracy and two counts of bank fraud.
According to a court notice, Guan was arrested Sunday morning and pleaded not guilty before a federal magistrate judge in Manhattan on Monday afternoon. He was released on $3 million personal bond and is subject to various restrictions, including his movements being limited to parts of New York and New Jersey.
In a statement, US Attorney Damien Williams said Guan “conspired with others to launder tens of millions of dollars in fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance payments and other proceeds of crime to benefit himself, media companies and their affiliates.”
“When the bank questioned the funds, Mr. Guan allegedly repeatedly lied and falsely claimed the funds came from legitimate donations to media companies,” Williams said.
The Epoch Times is not named in the indictment, but the nonprofit media company’s website lists Guan as its chief financial officer. Latest tax returnScheduled for submission in late 2023.
Prosecutors alleged that the money laundering scheme benefited “multinational media companies headquartered in Manhattan, New York.” The Epoch Times is headquartered on West 28th Street in Manhattan.
Prosecutors allege that the scheme by Guan and his co-conspirators caused the company’s revenue to skyrocket “from approximately $15 million to approximately $62 million” between 2019 and 2020.
According to IRS tax returns published by The Epoch Times, the company filed a tax return in 2019 for the nonprofit. Program revenues: $15.5 millionThe following year, The Epoch Times reported: Nontaxable income was $62.7 million.
The Epoch Times did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
According to the indictment, Guan, of Secaucus, New Jersey, managed an “online money-making team” for The Epoch Times and executed a scheme to buy “proceeds of crime” and transfer them to bank accounts linked to the publication.
Between 2020 and 2024, the group allegedly used a cryptocurrency platform to exchange tens of millions of dollars worth of criminal proceeds for cryptocurrency at a discounted price of 70 to 80 cents on the dollar. Prosecutors say the criminal proceeds came from sources including “fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance benefits” and were loaded onto tens of thousands of prepaid debit cards.
After purchasing the criminal proceeds, the participants allegedly used the stolen personal information to open various types of accounts and transfer the proceeds to bank accounts linked to media outlets and affiliated entities.
Prosecutors said the funds were often re-laundered through other accounts, including Guan’s own personal bank accounts and cryptocurrency accounts.
Guan and his co-conspirators allegedly lied to banks and other entities about the source of the proceeds in order to conceal their illegality.
Guan’s lawyer could not immediately be reached, but case records showed late Monday that Guan had been appointed a public defender.
A spokesman for the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment further on the indictment against Guan, which was filed in late May and unsealed on Monday.
Each bank fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, while the conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. In a press release, the Department of Justice noted that the charges against Guan are “unrelated to the news-gathering activities of the media company.”
NBC News and other media outlets Reported by The Epoch Times affiliate The Chinese religious group Falun Gong has supported former President Donald Trump in recent years as an ally against the country’s ruling Communist Party.