Epoch Times executive arrested over alleged $67m money laundering scheme

Weidong Guan is accused of involvement in ‘sprawling’ scheme to launder money to benefit himself and the right-wing outlet.

A top executive at the Epoch Times, a New York-based conservative media outlet known for its fierce criticism of the Chinese government, has been arrested over his alleged involvement in a money laundering scheme.

Weidong “Bill” Guan, the outlet’s chief financial officer, is alleged to have participated in a “sprawling, transnational scheme” to launder at least $67m in illegally obtained funds to benefit himself and the company, the United States Department of Justice said on Monday.

Under the management of Guan, members of the company’s “Make Money Online” team used cryptocurrency to buy tens of millions of dollars in crime proceeds, including fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance benefits that were loaded onto prepaid debit cards, the DOJ said.

Employees then used stolen personal information to open bank and cryptocurrency accounts for transferring the illicit proceeds, which were further laundered through other bank accounts held by the Epoch Times and Guan, according to federal prosecutors.

Prosecutors said the charges are not related to the Epoch Times’s news-gathering activities.