By Mallory Mattingly
Director Carl Rinsch will head to court later this year for allegedly scamming Netflix out of $11 million.
Rinsch has entered into a plea of not guilty, but if found guilty, he could spend the rest of his life in prison, according to Deadline.
The director was hired to write and direct a television science fiction show called WHITE HORSE. Rinsch acquired $44 million to create WHITE HORSE. He later demanded more money, and Netflix then paid the director $11 million and transferred those funds to a company Rinsch owned.
That money was supposed to be used to finish WHITE HORSE, but instead Rinsch consolidated those funds into a personal brokerage account and used it to buy cars and luxury goods — including $28,000 sofa and two mattresses totaling $650,300 — as well as gambling on cryptocurrency and the stock market, Variety reported.
“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. The FBI will continue to reel in any individual who seeks to defraud businesses,” FBI Assistant Director Leslie Backschies told the U.S. Attorney’s office.
In an Instagram post, Wired said that Rinsch is “charged with one count of wire fraud, one count of money laundering, and five counts of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from unspecified unlawful activity.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York said that Rinsch would face 20 years in prison for the wire fraud, another 20 years for money laundering and another 10 years for “engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity.”
Judge Jed S. Rakoff has set a trial start date for Sept. 8, 2025.
“As alleged, Carl Erik Rinsch orchestrated a scheme to steal millions by soliciting a large investment from a video streaming service, claiming that money would be used to finance a television show that he was creating,” acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky said in a press release. “But that was fiction. Rinsch instead allegedly used the funds on personal expenses and investments, including highly speculative options and cryptocurrency trading. Rinsch’s arrest is a reminder that this Office and our partners at the FBI remain vigilant in the fight against fraud and will bring those who cheat and steal to justice.”
At this time, all of these charges are accusations, and the defendant is innocent until proven guilty.
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