Filmmaker Carl Rinsch has landed in legal trouble regarding alleged stolen funds in connection with his planned Netflix series.
Per Deadline, Rinsch misused $11 million he received to make the sci-fi series, White Horse, allegedly spending the money on luxury items instead of on development. A seven-count indictment charging the 47 Ronin director has been unsealed, detailing his alleged scheme to defraud Netflix. Rinsch was arrested in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
The indictment claims that between late 2019 and early 2020, Rinsch demanded additional funding from Netflix, resulting in a $11 million payment, although the streamer paid approximately $44 million between 2018 and 2019. The $11 million was allegedly transferred to an account that Rinsch controlled in March 2020, and the director transferred the funds through various bank accounts and consolidated them in a personal brokerage account.
Rinsch allegedly spent the money on personal expenses and luxury purchases, including roughly $395,000 in hotel stays and approximately $2,417,000 on five Rolls-Royces and one Ferrari.
Rinsch faces charges of "one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of money laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and five counts of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
"Carl Rinsch allegedly stole more than $11 million from a prominent streaming platform to finance lavish purchases and personal investments instead of completing a promised television series," stated FBI Assistant Director Leslie Backschies. "The FBI will continue to reel in any individual who seeks to defraud businesses."