May 03, 2024 - 19:21
By cnbc.com

Guo Wengui chief of staff Yvette Wang pleads guilty to $1 billion fraud conspiracy in New York

Yvette Wang, the chief of staff to controversial exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui, pleaded guilty in New York federal court to a fraud conspiracy that swindled more than $1 billion from hundreds of thousands of victims around the world, prosecutors said.
Wang's plea came weeks before Guo is set to stand trial in U.S. District Court in Manhattan for related charges.
Guo is an associate of Steve Bannon, a former top White House advisor to Donald Trump.

The chief of staff to controversial exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui pleaded guilty in New York on Friday to a fraud conspiracy that swindled more than $1 billion from hundreds of thousands of victims around the world, prosecutors said.

Yvette Wang's plea came weeks before the 53-year-old Guo is set to stand trial in Manhattan federal court for related charges. Wang was scheduled to stand trial with Guo in that case before her plea.

Prosecutors accuse Guo, an associate of former Trump White House aide Steve Bannon, of duping his online followers with promises of outsized investment returns. Guo has pleaded not guilty.

Wang, 45, agreed to pay $1.4 billion in restitution to the United States and to forfeit the same amount of money, according to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams.

She faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison for the charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.