Federal prosecutors say a Kirkland, Washington pastor drew more than 30 investors, many from his own congregation, into a $13 million company that existed largely on paper. He has pleaded not guilty, and every allegation below is unproven.
A federal grand jury in Seattle has indicted Cristian Popescu, 46, the pastor of Passion for Christ church in Kirkland, on 10 counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering. According to a U.S. Attorney’s Office press release dated October 13, 2026, prosecutors allege he told congregants that God had chosen them to invest in Followone, Inc., a Bellevue company he described as an online marketplace and social network, and that the platform was in reality “a web of non-functional screens.”
Popescu, a Romanian citizen who lives in Bothell, was arraigned the same day, pleaded not guilty and was released on electronic monitoring over prosecutors’ objections. Trial is set for December 21, 2026. The case, filed as No. 2:26-cr-00191-JHC in the Western District of Washington, was investigated by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation. The indictment is an accusation, not proof of guilt, and Popescu is presumed innocent.
The allegations fit a pattern regulators have warned about for years: fraud that travels through shared faith and trust rather than through a prospectus. They follow an earlier TIJ investigation into a Georgia Ponzi scheme that targeted conservative Christian retirees, and they illustrate how little documentation some investors demand when the pitch comes from the pulpit.
What the Indictment Alleges
According to the Christian Post’s account of the 13-page indictment and the Justice Department’s release, Popescu founded Followone and served as its chief executive. Prosecutors say that from as early as 2015 he marketed the company as successful, claiming millions in revenue and a forthcoming Nasdaq listing. The indictment alleges he obtained at least $13 million from more than 30 investors.
Prosecutors point to several specific representations they say were false:
- Staffing: Popescu allegedly claimed Followone had about 20 employees when only three people worked there, and told investors he had hired engineers from major technology companies.
- Valuation: Investors were allegedly shown portfolios reflecting a $1.4 billion valuation, though prosecutors say the company had little or no value.
- Liquidity: Investors were allegedly told their money would remain in the company and could be withdrawn at any time. When they asked for refunds, prosecutors say, he cited an audit or the Nasdaq listing process as reasons to wait.
- Offices: Followone leased expensive office space in downtown Bellevue and was later evicted with more than $350,000 in unpaid rent, according to KIRO 7’s reporting on the case.
Individual wire transfers cited by prosecutors include one of nearly $1 million, another of roughly $600,000, and a third of about $500,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Following the Money
The charging documents describe a flow of funds that prosecutors say ran largely to the founder’s household rather than into product development. Per the Justice Department and press accounts of the indictment, investigators allege that:
- More than $4.5 million in company funds moved to accounts belonging to Popescu, his wife and other relatives.
- Popescu paid himself more than $1 million in wages from 2017 to 2024.
- About $300,000 went to his wife, who prosecutors say was not a genuine employee.
- Nearly $900,000 was transferred to a personal stock trading account, and about $1 million of company money paid personal credit card debt, according to the Christian Post.
- Shell companies and fake invoices were allegedly used to make the business appear to have real commercial dealings.
These figures come from the government’s charging narrative. They have not been tested in court, and Popescu’s defense has not publicly responded to the specifics in the materials TIJ reviewed. A defense attorney was not named in the public release, and TIJ was unable to locate public contact information for Popescu’s counsel or for Followone. The church did not respond to the Christian Post’s request for comment, and that outlet reported it was unclear whether Popescu still leads the congregation.
The charges also reflect where the money allegedly came from. Prosecutors say Popescu urged investors to use retirement accounts, home equity and personal loans, and even children’s college savings. He allegedly offered board seats to anyone who invested $1 million. As Townhall reported, investors were also asked to sign nondisclosure agreements, use encrypted messaging, and turn off phones and smart speakers during meetings.
Secrecy, Pressure and the Pulpit
Nondisclosure agreements and device bans are unusual in a start-up pitch to friends and fellow worshippers. In the government’s telling, they served a second purpose: they kept investors from comparing notes. Prosecutors allege that when investors pressed for information or expressed doubts, Popescu became angry, invoked his position in the church and told them they were “demonically possessed,” per the Christian Post.
FBI Seattle Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Herrington said in the Justice Department release that Popescu “defrauded dozens of his own church members through a series of elaborate lies.” Acting U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd said the defendant “created the mirage of a successful, valuable online marketplace and social media site in one.” IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Carrie Nordyke said financial crime “is not victimless and often destroys the lives of its victims.”
Those statements are the government’s characterization of the case. What the evidence shows will be decided at trial, where the prosecution must prove each count beyond a reasonable doubt.
A Familiar Pattern, Documented by Regulators
Federal securities regulators have long identified faith communities as fertile ground for investment fraud. The SEC’s investor alert on faith-based fraud says such schemes exploit “the trust that comes from shared beliefs,” and notes that unlicensed individuals commit much of it. Its listed red flags include an unregistered seller, an offer that cannot be put in writing, promises of outsized or guaranteed returns, and pressure to decide quickly.
The alert cites earlier SEC cases involving a pastor accused of defrauding retirees in 2017 and a prominent pastor and financial planner accused of targeting elderly investors in 2018, along with an enforcement action against an Illinois firm that allegedly aimed an offering at Christian investors through churches and a Christian college. The agency’s general affinity fraud investor alert describes the same dynamic across ethnic, professional and religious groups.
Several features of the Followone allegations track those red flags. The seller was not described in the charging materials as a registered securities professional, the product was a private company with no public market, and the supposed exit, a Nasdaq listing, was repeatedly deferred. Whether Followone’s offerings were ever registered or qualified for an exemption is not addressed in the public documents reviewed, and TIJ has not independently verified how the securities were sold.
The Broader Scale of Investment Fraud
The Washington case is small beside the national totals. The FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report, summarized by Help Net Security, put total reported losses at $20.877 billion, up 26 percent from the prior year. Investment scams were the largest category at $8.6 billion across 72,984 complaints, and cryptocurrency investment fraud accounted for $7.2 billion of that.
Followone was not a crypto scheme, and the IC3 data covers internet-enabled crime, so the comparison is one of context rather than category. But the numbers show why prosecutors and regulators keep warning about investment pitches that rely on trust instead of paperwork.
The case also echoes another matter TIJ has covered. The First Liberty Building & Loan collapse in Georgia, in which the SEC alleges roughly $140 million was raised from about 300 investors, many of them elderly conservative Christians, involved a civil case rather than a criminal indictment and remains unresolved. The two matters are separate, involve different defendants and different allegations, and nothing in the public record links them.
What Remains Unknown
Several questions are open. The public documents do not say how many of the 30-plus investors were members of Passion for Christ, how much was ultimately lost, or whether any funds have been frozen or recovered. The Justice Department release does not mention a forfeiture allegation. It is also unclear who, if anyone, vetted Followone’s claims before investors committed savings, and whether the church as an institution held any role in the offering.
The next milestone is the December 21 trial date, though schedules in federal fraud cases frequently move. Investors who believe they may have been affected can check a seller’s registration through the SEC’s Investor.gov tool and report suspected fraud to the SEC, the FTC or the FBI. As the SEC’s alert advises, a pitch that cannot be put in writing is itself a reason to walk away.
Disclosure: TIJ relied on the Justice Department’s public release, the filed indictment’s docket header and press reports of its contents. Neither Popescu, his counsel nor Followone could be reached through publicly available contact information. This article will be updated if they respond. Photo: Peter Herrmann via Unsplash.