Epoch Times, MAGA-Aligned Newspaper Tied to Chinese Cult Falun Gong, Investigated as a Money-Laundering Scheme

The CFO of the conservative newspaper, the Epoch Times, known for spreading right-wing and pro-Donald Trump conspiracy theories and misinformation, has been arrested for money laundering. The newspaper is also tied to the anti-Chinese Communist Party cult known as Falun Gong, as its top brass are known followers.

Epoch Times CFO Weidong "Bill" Guan, 61, was arrested and then charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of bank fraud. He allegedly ran a yearslong scheme to launder at least $67 million in illicit funds, say federal prosecutors.

According to CNBC, the Epoch Times money laundering scheme involved "cryptocurrency, tens of thousands of prepaid debit cards, fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance benefits, and stolen personal information." which reportedly increased the conservative newspaper's reported annual revenue.

US Attorney Damian Williams stated that Guan "conspired with others to benefit himself, the media company, and its affiliates by laundering tens of millions of dollars in fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance benefits and other crime proceeds."

However, the Epoch Times CFO pleaded not guilty and was released on a $3 million personal recognizance bond. However, he is restricted to only traveling to parts of New York and New Jersey.

Banks allegedly reported his scheme, which "raised questions about the funds," with the newspaper CFO lying repeatedly and "falsely claimed that the funds came from legitimate donations to the media company."

"The company intends to and will fully cooperate with any investigation dealing with the allegations against Mr. Guan," an Epoch Times spokesperson said in a statement. "In the interim, although Mr. Guan is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, the company has suspended him until this matter is resolved."

Epoch Times and the Falun Gong Cult

Chinese immigrants first founded the Epoch Times back in 2000 as a non-profit media organization. However, it became controversial not just because of its conspiracy theories but also its connection to the infamous Chinese cult known as Falun Gong.

It started out with an anti-CCP message but has since been spreading right-wing propaganda, as well as several debunked conspiracy theories. It has been a known spreader of election misinformation during the 2020 presidential elections as well. The Falun Gong has repeatedly advocated for Donald Trump.

Epoch Times's Massive Growth Raised Questions, Leading to Money Laundering Accusation

The Epoch Times has had unprecedented growth in recent years, with it including an aggressive pro-Trump advertising campaign ahead of the 2020 election. The newspaper raised eyebrows when it was revealed that it created fake accounts to spread its content and was even banned from advertising on Facebook because it violated the platform's advertising transparency rules.

This massive growth also led to many questions, with AJ Bauer, a journalism professor at the University of Alabama, pointing out that the Epoch Times's "rapid and massive financial growth" did not seem to correspond with a "comparable increase in circulation or influence within the right-wing media sphere."

The professor added, "Something always felt off to me about it, and it seems like government investigators felt that too."

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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