Prosecutors identified the former Trump adviser as part of a massive criminal conspiracy allegedly orchestrated by Chinese tycoon Guo Wengui
DOJ Filing: Steve Bannon Is a “Co-Conspirator” in a $1 Billion Fraud Case
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Prosecutors identified the former Trump adviser as part of a massive criminal conspiracy allegedly orchestrated by Chinese tycoon Guo Wengui
DOJ Filing: Steve Bannon Is a “Co-Conspirator” in a $1 Billion Fraud Case
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Guo Wengui and the fabulist congressman are both facing federal fraud charges.
Game recognizes game. And the far right scene in New York City is kind of a small world. So it’s weird, but not particularly surprising, that just days before being indicted on federal fraud charges, fabulist Congressman George Santos appeared on a livestream produced by devotees of Guo Wengui—an exiled Chinese mogul who allegedly orchestrated of a massive international fraud and is also a prodigious purveyor of misinformation.
George Santos’ New “Mission”: Freeing an Accused Fraudster Who Tried to Overturn the 2020 Election
As we roll into the 2024 political season, you can rest assured the political right will be posturing more and more against China, while rightfully calling for an end to Ukraine aid. This trend was highlighted by a long line of recent Republican congressional and senatorial candidates (Joe Kent, Blake Masters, Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, J.D. Vance, Mehmet Oz, etc).
Bannon, Guo, Yan: Where a Populist Right Idol Gets His Funding (archived)
Guo Wengui, arrested March 15 on fraud charges, was known to have invested, but the extent of his influence on the site has not been previously reported.
Indicted Chinese exile controls Gettr social media site, ex-employees say
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Federal investigators have asked witnesses about Bannon’s connections to the far-right mogul.
Steve Bannon Is Neck-Deep in Guo Wengui’s Allegedly Fraudulent Business Empire (archived)
Previously:
Steve Bannon’s wealthy patron “led a complex conspiracy to defraud thousands of his online followers,” federal prosecutors allege.
MAGA Mogul Guo Wengui Charged in $1 Billion Fraud Scheme (archived)
Guo Wengui has been trailed by scandals involving corruption and espionage. What is he really after?
How a Tycoon Linked to Chinese Intelligence Became a Darling of Trump Republicans
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Exclusive: The Fugitive Who Tried to Spark a US-China War
Guo’s intelligence handlers, Ma and Zhou, were allies of Ling Jihua, who was former President Hu Jintao’s chief of staff. The crucial link between Ma and Ling was provided by Sun Zhengcai, the former party secretary of Chongqing, also a Politburo member.
As we’ve seen, Zhou, Ling, and Sun all ended up in jail – targets of Xi’s anti-corruption campaign. But, remarkably, not Guo – who according to former Chinese government officials was Ma’s MSS agent in charge of special ops overseas.
Guo’s job in 2012 was to sabotage the ascension of Xi by spreading an array of fake news in China and among the Chinese diaspora. That failed.
Nonetheless, Guo remained at work as an MSS agent until at least October 2021, according to well-placed Chinese sources. Considering his recent activities and the fact he was lavishly embraced by prominent US China hawks, it appears that his assignment was to cause maximum damage to US-China relations, arguably derailing them to a point of no return.
Links behind paywalls (all but a few that I weren’t archived):
Read More »As for Bannon’s financial patron, Guo Wengui, he is now officially declared bankrupt but still living in the United States. Given his role in sponsoring a failed coup in the U.S., one would think that the authorities might be considering extraditing him to China where he is wanted on serious corruption charges. That doesn’t appear to be a likely outcome. Why not? It seems that Guo’s anti-China views and broadcasts to the Chinese-American diaspora are too useful for the U.S. establishment in pursuing its hostile policy towards Beijing.
Washington’s hostile agenda against China (dressed up as a purported security threat) is evidently a much bigger priority than defending its own democratic institutions.
Wrong GTV, I believe.
Related:
A Fugitive Chinese Mogul Spent Big to Overturn the 2020 Election
The new information shows that Guo played a previously unreported role in financing the promotion of false election fraud claims in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s defeat. Guo’s spending on these efforts was not against the law. But Guo—a divisive figure with extensive legal problems—had ample reason to seek Trump’s favor. Guo is pursuing political asylum in the United States. If denied, he could face deportation and probable imprisonment in China. He was then, and remains, under investigation by US federal prosecutors for possible fraud and other malfeasance. Since 2020, the US Security and Exchange Commission has also been investigating his role in what it has said was an illegal public offering by a Guo media company. The SEC forced three companies linked to Guo to pay a $539 million settlement last year. According to two sources with knowledge of the probe, the commission is continuing to investigate Guo personally.
Guo has also been accused in lawsuits filed by former business partners and Chinese dissidents of working as a Chinese agent while posing as a CCP critic. No court has ruled on the legitimacy of those allegations, and Guo denies them. He denies all allegations of fraud and other wrongdoing, as well.
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