Man admits defrauding investors of $14m for fake Netflix film

A man accused of defrauding investors of $14m (£10.7m) for a fake Netflix film now faces up to 20 years in prison.

Adam Joiner, 41, pleaded guilty on Friday to one count of wire fraud in a case that has seen him accused of raising money by falsely claiming the funds would be used to produce a Netflix movie.

According to prosecutors, Joiner forged signatures and used fake documents in his efforts to raise millions of dollars from investment firms based in China and Korea.

Joiner falsely told investors that Netflix had agreed to distribute the film, which he said would be titled Legends, the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said.

The man presented a false distribution agreement containing a Netflix executive’s forged signature, according to the prosecution.

Joiner later claimed that Amblin Partners, the entertainment company co-founded by Steven Spielberg, had agreed to distribute Legends instead of Netflix.

The FBI, which investigated the case, found that about $5.2m (£4m) of the funds raised from investors were used to buy Joiner’s residence in Manhattan Beach.

Joiner is now facing a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

He will be sentenced on 6 March, 2020.