Prosecutors Urge Jury to Convict Chinese Dissident Miles Guo of Racketeering Conspiracy

On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, Manhattan federal prosecutors urged a jury to convict Chinese dissident Miles Guo of operating a vast racketeering conspiracy. Guo, also known as Ho Wan Kwok and Guo Wengui, has been on trial for over seven weeks on racketeering, money laundering, and wire fraud charges.

In closing arguments, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Finkel argued that Guo grew desperate for money after a Hong Kong court seized his assets in 2018. Finkel said Guo concocted a series of fraudulent investment ventures, including the Steve Bannon-tied social media company GTV Media Group and a purported cryptocurrency platform called Himalaya Exchange.

Finkel told the jury that Guo “brainwashed” thousands of his Chinese dissident followers through online videos into investing over $1.3 billion total in these ventures. However, Guo allegedly laundered the funds through shell companies to finance his lavish lifestyle, rather than using investments as promised. “Miles Guo built an enterprise of fraud,” Finkel stated, calling it a “fraud empire” where Guo lied to steal money.

Defense attorney Sidhardha Kamaraju offered a differing perspective in his closing. He argued that Guo’s businesses were genuinely aimed at the political goal of toppling the Chinese Communist Party. “It’s not a racketeering enterprise. It’s a political enterprise,” Kamaraju stated.

Kamaraju also pointed out there is no evidence Guo personally spent supporter investments. Despite the Hong Kong asset seizure, he claimed that Guo did not need to steal given his family’s wealth. Furthermore, Kamaraju suggested Guo truly believed critics were spies due to events like a former Justice Department lawyer illegally lobbying for Guo’s extradition to China.

Now, the jury must decide if the prosecution has proven Guo operated an illegitimate racketeering scheme. Guo chose not to testify during the trial. He has been in jail as a flight risk since his March 2023 arrest.

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