Chinese cinema magnate Hui Qin is facing charges that could put him in prison for 27 years.
Prosecutors also say he engaged in similar straw donor schemes to funnel donations to a U.S. representative in New York and a congressional candidate in Rhode Island.
As part of the plea deal, Qin also admitted that he filed a false application for lawful permanent residency status in 2019 when he claimed to have never used an alias. In fact, prosecutors said, he was provided the alias "Muk Lam Li" by an official in the Chinese government in 2008.
He used that name to transfer more than $5 million from the Chinese government to a U.S. bank account. He spent a portion of it on a luxury apartment in Manhattan, according to prosecutors.
Qin was previously listed on Forbes list of billionaires, with an estimated net worth of $1.8 billion from his stake in film and entertainment companies, including the Honk Kong-based SMI Culture.
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A phone call to his attorney was not immediately returned.
"Qin pleaded guilty today to engaging in a brazen web of deception, spreading lies to federal election and immigration authorities and a state agency," U.S. Attorney Breon Pace said in a statement. "No one is above the law, no matter their wealth or station in society."
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