The chief financial officer of the Epoch Times news outlet has been arrested over his alleged involvement in a massive money-laundering scheme.
Federal prosecutors allege that Bill Guan, 61, participated in a global plot to launder at least $67m (£52m) of illegal cash to benefit himself and the Epoch Times.According to the indictment, Mr Guan led the outlet’s “Make Money Online” team, which used cryptocurrency to purchase tens of millions worth of crime proceeds.
In a statement on Monday evening, the Epoch Times told the BBC that it “intends to and will fully cooperate with any investigation dealing with the allegations against Mr Guan”.
“Although Mr Guan is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, the company has suspended him until this matter is resolved,” the news outlet said.
In the 12-page indictment, federal prosecutors detailed the alleged plan, which they say began around 2020.The plot, prosecutors said, was simple: members of the Make Money Online (MMO) team would purchase crime proceeds via cryptocurrency at a discount and transfer those proceeds into bank accounts held by entities affiliated with newspaper.
It was started by Chinese-Americans affiliated with a religious group called Falun Gong.In the years since, it has grown into purportedly one of the US’s most powerful conservative news organisations and a home to conspiracy theories, right-wing misinformation and sharp opposition to the Chinese Communist Party.
The original article contains 437 words, the summary contains 227 words. Saved 48%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The chief financial officer of the Epoch Times news outlet has been arrested over his alleged involvement in a massive money-laundering scheme.
Federal prosecutors allege that Bill Guan, 61, participated in a global plot to launder at least $67m (£52m) of illegal cash to benefit himself and the Epoch Times.According to the indictment, Mr Guan led the outlet’s “Make Money Online” team, which used cryptocurrency to purchase tens of millions worth of crime proceeds.
In a statement on Monday evening, the Epoch Times told the BBC that it “intends to and will fully cooperate with any investigation dealing with the allegations against Mr Guan”.
“Although Mr Guan is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, the company has suspended him until this matter is resolved,” the news outlet said.
In the 12-page indictment, federal prosecutors detailed the alleged plan, which they say began around 2020.The plot, prosecutors said, was simple: members of the Make Money Online (MMO) team would purchase crime proceeds via cryptocurrency at a discount and transfer those proceeds into bank accounts held by entities affiliated with newspaper.
It was started by Chinese-Americans affiliated with a religious group called Falun Gong.In the years since, it has grown into purportedly one of the US’s most powerful conservative news organisations and a home to conspiracy theories, right-wing misinformation and sharp opposition to the Chinese Communist Party.
The original article contains 437 words, the summary contains 227 words. Saved 48%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!