Guo Wengui is said to have persuaded hundreds of thousands to “invest in various companies and programs through false statements and representations.”
An exiled Chinese businessman has been arrested in New York for billions of dollars in fraud. Together with his financier, Guo Wengui persuaded hundreds of thousands of followers on the Internet to “invest in various companies and programs through false statements and representations,” said the New York prosecutor’s office and filed charges.
As a result, the two would have embezzled hundreds of millions of dollars. Overall, the damage amounts to more than a billion dollars. Guo left China in 2014 to avoid prosecution for bribery and embezzlement in his home country. In Beijing, Guo was a real estate tycoon.
The 54-year-old also had good relationships in circles close to the government in the United States and is considered a business partner of Steve Bannon, a former top adviser to ex-President Donald Trump. Bannon was arrested on a Guo yacht in 2020 for fraud.
(APA/dpa)
