by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE, May 19 – After a circus-like civil case involving Guo Wengui in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, which Inner City Press closely covered, here, March 15, 2023 saw the unsealing of a twelve-count Indictment charging
HO WAN KWOK, a/k/a “Miles Guo,” a/k/a “Miles Kwok,” a/k/a “Guo Wengui,” a/k/a “Brother Seven,” a/k/a “The Principal,” and KIN MING JE, a/k/a “William Je,” with various wire fraud, securities fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering charges. JE, who is KWOK’s financier, is also charged with obstruction of justice.
The prosecutors said that "KWOK was arrested this morning in New York, New York, and will be presented this afternoon. JE is currently at large."
Not mentioned was another, related arrest on March 15, of Guo's chief of staff Yangping Wang, aka Yvette Wang. Inner City Press, lone media in the Magistrates Court, live tweeted her presentment when the prosecutors, seemingly hoping to flip her as a cooperator, offered release on $5 million bond, but only with two co-signers they approve.
Minutes later, in a larger courtroom, Guo / Kwok was presented - with a Federal Defender for the day - and detained on consent. Inner City Press live tweeted, thread here
On March 31, Guo put in his written argument, on Patreon here.
But on April 20, Judge Torres denied bail. Full order on Patreon here.
On April 28, the prosecutors wrote in asking to stay the SEC action: they "seek a complete stay of this matter until the completion of the trial or other disposition in a parallel criminal case, United States v. Ho Wan Kwok et al., S1 23 Cr. 118 (AT) (the “Criminal Case”). The Criminal Case arises from the same operative facts as this proceeding... Defendant Mountains of Spices LLC (d/b/a “New York Farm”) would oppose a stay on discovery, because it indicated that it intends to move to “sever” itself as a defendant, but it noted that—should the Court be inclined to issue a stay—Mountains of Spices would" - full filing on Patreon here.
Judge Gardephe granted the motion: "Case Stayed (ks)."
On May 17, 2023, the US opposed any partial lifting of the stay, stating that "the leader of MOS, who is the subject of the US' ongoing investigation, had been tapped by Kwok to be the leader of Kwok's 'movement'... the leader of MOS has been streaming such videos from the mansion in Mahway, NJ" - full filing on Patreon here.
The SEC case is Securities and Exchange Commission v. Kwok et al., 23-cv-2200 (Gardephe)
The case is US v. Kwok, et al., 23-cr-118 (Torres)
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