In October 2020, a Chinese businessman named Yudan Li was arrested in Los Angeles and accused of conspiring to commit fraud and money laundering in connection with a $1 billion investment fraud scheme. Li was charged with multiple counts of fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, and money laundering. According to authorities, Li and his co-conspirators targeted Chinese investors, convincing them to invest in a phony company by falsely claiming that the company had access to a large reserve of natural gas.
The investors were then promised high returns on their investments, which never materialized. If convicted, Li faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of the fraud and money laundering counts.