News Desk · Fraud

Washington pastor charged with wire fraud and money laundering in $13 million investment scheme

Federal prosecutors say the pastor of a Kirkland church recruited more than 30 investors into a company he ran and moved investor money to himself and his family.

FraudUS13 Oct 20262 min read

On October 13, 2026, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington announced that Cristian Popescu, 46, of Bothell, Washington, was arraigned in US District Court in Seattle on an indictment charging ten counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering in connection with a $13 million fraud scheme. Popescu is the pastor of a Kirkland, Washington Christian congregation called Passion for Christ. He pleaded not guilty, and trial is set for December 21, 2026. The charges are allegations.

According to the indictment, as early as 2015 Popescu used lies and deception to attract more than 30 investors to Followone Inc., a company he presented as an online marketplace and social media site. Prosecutors say he used his role as a pastor to recruit investors from his church, telling them that God had chosen them to invest. He allegedly claimed the company was about to be listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange and at one point claimed it had a value of $1.4 billion when he knew it had little or no value. Prosecutors say he urged victims to take money from their retirement accounts, take out personal or home equity loans, and use their children's college savings accounts.

According to prosecutors, Popescu used shell companies to make it appear that Followone had business dealings with other companies, while using investor money to pay fake invoices to shell companies he controlled. He allegedly transferred over $4.5 million of Followone funds to accounts belonging to himself, his wife and other family members, and paid himself over $1 million in Followone wages between 2017 and 2024. The five money laundering counts concern transfers of invested funds from the Followone account to his personal bank account.

The case is being investigated by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

Why it matters to AML professionals

Affinity fraud uses trust inside a community, such as a church, to raise money that is then diverted. Shell companies and fake invoices are a common way to make the diversion look like normal business spending. AML professionals who trace where investor money goes after it reaches a business account can spot these schemes before losses grow.

Red flags in this case

If this landed in your queue

  1. Map where incoming investor funds go and how quickly they leave the business account
  2. Check whether vendors receiving payments are linked to the business owner through ownership, addresses or signatories
  3. Compare the company's claimed revenue, staff and valuation with its actual account activity
  4. File a SAR when money raised from investors is moved to personal or family accounts without a clear business reason

Key terms

Affinity fraud
A fraud that targets members of a group, such as a religious community, by exploiting the trust within that group.
Shell company
A company with little or no real business activity, which can be used to hide where money goes.
Wire fraud
A US federal crime of using electronic communications, such as wire transfers or emails, in a scheme to obtain money through false statements.

Interview angle

How would you investigate a business account that receives many investor deposits and pays invoices to little-known vendors?

Explain tracing the funds from deposit to final destination, checking who owns and controls the vendors, comparing activity with the stated business, looking for payments to insiders and their families, and escalating with a clear SAR narrative.

Sources

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Every fact in AMLift News Desk stories comes from an official source: a regulator, court, government gazette or the company's own filing.