Exiled Tycoon’s Accomplice Sentenced in Billion-Dollar Fraud Scandal

The “chief of staff” for a Chinese business magnate living in exile was handed a 10-year prison sentence for her involvement in misappropriating investor funds for extravagant expenditures, including a mansion, nearly $1 million in Persian and Chinese rugs, and a Lamborghini, as announced by federal officials on Monday.

Yvette Wang, who played a pivotal role in a fraud scheme that cheated thousands of investors out of around $1.4 billion, was sentenced by Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York. Wang, a Chinese national residing in New York City, had been engaged in the fraudulent activities from at least 2018 until March 2023, according to authorities.

The 45-year-old Wang collaborated with Miles Guo, the exiled tycoon, and another co-conspirator, Kin Ming Je, to lure investors into fraudulent ventures such as the Rule of Law Foundation, which falsely claimed to oppose the Chinese Communist Party, and Himalaya Exchange, a sham cryptocurrency exchange now under FBI control, the indictment revealed.

Wang faced charges including wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering. When FBI agents apprehended her in March 2023, they discovered $130,000 in cash in her apartment, as stated by officials from the Justice Department.

Wang’s extravagant spending, facilitated by the ill-gotten funds, also included about $4.4 million on a custom-built Bugatti sports car, a $62,000 television and a $53,000 fireplace log cradle holder, as noted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

For her services, Wang was compensated with $500,000 annually and was provided a $1.1 million condo in Manhattan, as per the indictment.

Wang’s lawyer, Louis V. Fasulo, did not immediately return requests for comment.

Following her prison term, Wang is set to undergo three years of supervised release and is also required to forfeit $1.4 billion. Meanwhile, Guo was convicted in July and is awaiting his sentencing.

The Southern District of New York spokesperson did not immediately respond to inquiries about the status of Je, who remained elusive throughout the summer.

Exploiting Dissent for Profit

After fleeing China for the United States in 2015, Guo gained notoriety through online mediums, critiquing the Chinese Communist Party in media interviews and social media videos, court documents indicate. He amassed nearly half a million followers on YouTube.

Guo leveraged his identity as both a dissident and a purported billionaire to attract investments into allegedly new projects ranging from anti-Chinese government nonprofits to a so-called exclusive club that promised “world-class products, services, and experiences,” which in reality, offered no tangible membership advantages, according to court documents.

Wang, described in court documents as Guo’s “chief of staff,” was instrumental in managing these deceptive enterprises. She oversaw the fraudulent club that charged up to $50,000 per year and GTV, a so-called “citizen journalism” social media platform where investors put in $452 million. The indictment states that the vast majority of these funds were diverted to a relative of Guo.

Guo, Wang, and Je reportedly used around 500 accounts associated with 80 different entities to launder the stolen funds, the indictment states.

Guo could face many years in prison for orchestrating this elaborate fraud, as stated by U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. Je, who holds citizenship in both Hong Kong and the United Kingdom, faces a potential additional 20 years in prison for obstruction of justice beyond the charges he shares with Guo.

Contributing: Thao Nguyen