47 ronin director Carl Eric Rinsch was found guilty of fraud Netflix of $11 million for a show that never happened while he used the money for luxury purchases, including a Ferrari, several Rolls-Royces and luxury bedding, the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan said.
Rinsch was found guilty after a week-long trial. He was found guilty of one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering – each carrying a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, This was stated by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. on Thursday.
He was also found guilty of five counts of dealing in cash with property obtained from certain illegal activities, each of which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
The director began filming White horse Set around 2017, the indictment tells the story of a scientist who creates a humanoid species that rebels against its creators.
Prosecutors said Netflix initially paid Rinsch about $44 million between 2018 and 2019 for the unfinished sci-fi series, then sent another $11 million around March 6, 2020, after he said he needed more funding to complete production.
Instead of investing the money in the show, prosecutors said, Rinsch transferred the cash to “several different bank accounts and then consolidated it into a personal brokerage account.”
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Rinsch then used the funds for a series of personal and speculative purchases. He made a series of bad investments, losing about half of his $11 million in a couple of months, prosecutors said.
He then invested the remaining funds in the cryptocurrency market and “for personal expenses and luxury items, including at least $1.7 million in credit card bills; at least $3.3 million on furniture, antiques and mattresses; at least $387,000 on Swiss watches; and at least $2.4 million for five Rolls-Royces and a red Ferrari, prosecutors said.
“Carl Eric Rinsch took $11 million intended for a television show and bet it on speculative stock options and cryptocurrency transactions,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “Today’s conviction shows that when someone steals from investors, we will follow the money and hold them accountable.”
IN statement to The New York TimesRinsch's lawyer, Benjamin Zeman, said he disagreed with the verdict.
“I fear this could set a dangerous precedent for artists who are embroiled in contractual and creative disputes with their benefactors, in this case one of the largest media companies in the world, to be charged with fraud by the federal government,” Zeman said.
Netflix said it had no comment when contacted by Global News about Rinsch's conviction.
Rinse something charged in March “for participating in a scheme to defraud a video-on-demand streaming service” after production failed to be completed White horse.
“Carl Erik Rinsch orchestrated a scheme to steal millions by soliciting large investments from a video streaming service, claiming that the money would be used to finance a television show he was producing. But this was a fabrication. Instead, Rinsch allegedly used the funds for personal expenses and investments, including highly speculative options and cryptocurrency trading,” Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky said. said in March.
“Rinsch's arrest is a reminder that this Office and our FBI partners remain vigilant in the fight against fraud and will hold accountable those who cheat and steal,” Podolsky added.
Rinshu's sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 17, 2026.
—With files from The Associated Press
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