Exiled Chinese tycoon Guo Wengui, also known as Ho Wan Kwok and Miles Guo, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison by a U.S. federal court in Manhattan. He was found guilty on nine charges, including money laundering, wire fraud, and securities offences, after defrauding thousands of investors and supporters of more than $1 billion.
A federal judge stated that Guo's fraud cost more than 1,000 people worldwide hundreds of millions of dollars. While Guo branded himself as a critic of the Chinese government and claimed he came to the U.S. to destroy the Chinese Communist Party, the judge noted that he instead diverted investor money to live lavishly. Guo was also ordered to forfeit US$889 million in restitution.
Guo, who is in his fifties, built an online platform criticizing the Chinese government and was a close ally of former Donald Trump aide Steve Bannon, with whom he co-founded a movement aiming to overthrow the Chinese government. He was arrested by the FBI in March 2023 at his luxury Manhattan apartment overlooking Central Park.