Epoch Times CFO charged in $67m money laundering plot
The chief financial officer of the Epoch Times has been arrested for his alleged involvement in a large-scale money laundering scheme.
Federal prosecutors claim that Bill Guan, 61, took part in an international operation to launder at least $67 million (£52 million) of illicit funds for his benefit and that of the Epoch Times.
The indictment states that Mr. Guan headed the outlet’s “Make Money Online” team, which used cryptocurrency to buy tens of millions in criminal proceeds.
Mr. Guan has not yet entered a plea. If found guilty, he faces over 30 years in prison.
In a statement on Monday evening, the Epoch Times informed 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.
The Epoch Times did not answer specific questions about the Make Money Online team mentioned by prosecutors.
Mr. Guan could not be reached by the BBC for comment.
The 12-page indictment details the alleged scheme, which prosecutors claim began around 2020.
According to prosecutors, the plot was straightforward: members of the Make Money Online (MMO) team would buy criminal proceeds using cryptocurrency at a discount and transfer the funds into bank accounts linked to entities associated with the newspaper.
The illegal proceeds would ultimately be moved back into the Epoch Times accounts through “tens of thousands of layered transactions”, including through prepaid debit cards and financial accounts opened using the stolen identification information.
According to the indictment, for years the scheme worked to enrich the Epoch Times, pumping tens of millions of dollars into the paper.
Coinciding with the time Mr Guan came up with the alleged scheme, the outlet’s internal accounting showed its annual revenue ballooned by some 410% – from $15m in 2019 to roughly $62m the following year.
When banks asked Mr Guan where the surge of money was coming from he lied, claiming the funds came from “donations”, prosecutors said.
Mr. Guan has been charged with one count of conspiring to commit money laundering and two counts of bank fraud.
Prosecutors noted these charges “do not relate to the Media Company [the Epoch Times’] newsgathering activities”.
Founded in 2000, the Epoch Times began as a small, low-budget newspaper handed out for free in New York.
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 organizations and home to conspiracy theories, right-wing misinformation, and sharp opposition to the Chinese Communist Party.
