Chinese fraudster Guo Wengui jailed for 30 years appeals US sentence

NEW YORK - Exiled Chinese entrepreneur Guo Wengui has appealed his 30-year US prison sentence for defrauding thousands of people of more than US$1 billion (S$1.3 billion), according to court records made public on July 8.

In July 2024, a jury unanimously found Guo guilty of fraud and various securities offences, wire fraud and money laundering.

He challenged his conviction and prison sentence in a filing on July 2, the newly released court records showed. No grounds for the appeal were stated in the brief petition.

Guo, who made his fortune in real estate, moved to the United States in 2015, fleeing China, where he was targeted by an Interpol red notice for financial fraud – accusations he denied.

Also known as Ho Wan Kwok and Miles Guo, he was accused of leveraging his online notoriety since 2018 to persuade thousands of people to invest in his companies or projects, which promised lucrative returns or luxury services but allegedly mainly served to fund his lavish lifestyle, according to US authorities.

From his gilded exile in New York, he portrayed himself as a fierce critic of the Chinese communist regime and a staunch defender of democracy.

Guo and Steve Bannon, a notorious operator of the political right, formed a lobbying group opposed to the Chinese Communist Party.

Bannon was arrested in August 2020 on Guo’s yacht in a case involving the embezzlement of funds tied to the US border wall project that was a flagship promise of Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Guo, who is in his fifties but whose exact age is unknown, was arrested by the FBI in March 2023 in his luxury Manhattan apartment overlooking Central Park.

He was ordered to forfeit US$889 million in proceeds from his illegal schemes, as well as his interest in property including a US$26.5 million mansion in New Jersey, a Lamborghini, a Rolls Royce Phantom, and a Bugatti sports car. AFP