Over a seven-week trial, Chinese business tycoon Guo Wengui is accused of deceiving his followers to put money into bogus investments and using the money to preserve a luxurious lifestyle.
Guo Wengui , a business tycoon and outspoken opponent of China 's Communist Party, was found guilty by a New York federal court of defrauding customers in a $US1 billion scheme.
In a New York federal court, Guo was convicted on nine of the 12 criminal counts he faced, including racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud, in a trial that lasted seven weeks.US District Judge Analisa Torres set his sentencing for November 19. "Thousands of Guo's online followers were victimised so that Guo could live a life of excess," Damian Williams, the US Attorney in Manhattan, said in a statement after the verdict.Earlier in the trial, jurors were allowed to hold keys to the Lamborghini that authorities found in a garage on Guo's Connecticut estate.
"Mr Guo didn't care about the money," defence lawyer Sidhardha Kamaraju said in his closing argument last week.The lawyer did not deny that his client lived lavishly, but he said prosecutors wanted jurors to take "leaps in logic" to find Guo guilty."It is not a crime to live in luxury or to spend money on nice things. It's not a crime to have a yacht or a jet or to wear nice suits. It may not be our lifestyle. It may be odd.
He applied for political asylum in the US, moved to a luxury apartment overlooking Central Park and joined former president Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago golf club in Florida.
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