A Bothell pastor accused of swindling members of his own Kirkland congregation out of roughly $13 million was released on electronic monitoring this week over federal prosecutors' objections, after pleading not guilty to 15 counts of wire fraud and money laundering. Cristian Popescu, 46, a Romanian citizen living in Bothell, was arraigned Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Seattle and is now set for a December jury trial.
According to the New York Post, Popescu led the Passion for Christ congregation in Kirkland and allegedly lured investors into his company by telling them God had chosen them to fund his business. That company, Followone, Inc., was pitched as a Bellevue-based all-in-one e-commerce giant and social network, and prosecutors say Popescu began the scheme in 2015, recruiting roughly 30 investors with fabricated revenue figures, invented stock values, and false claims of an impending Nasdaq IPO.
Court filings described by the U.S. Department of Justice lay out how Popescu enforced strict secrecy with prospective investors, requiring them to sign non-disclosure agreements, communicate through encrypted messaging, power off their phones, and disable smart devices like Amazon Alexa during in-person meetings. Prosecutors allege those tactics kept victims from cross-checking his claims, even as his company's online marketplace amounted to nothing more than non-operational placeholder screens, according to the indictment.
Retirement Savings and College Funds Funneled Into a Sham
The Post reports that one victim wired nearly $1 million in a single transaction, while other investors put in roughly $600,000 and $500,000 apiece. Authorities say Popescu offered a board seat to anyone willing to invest $1 million and pressed victims to move retirement-account and children's college-savings money into Followone, all while claiming the company was worth $1.4 billion despite knowing it had little or no real value, per the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington.
Investigators allege Popescu used shell companies and fake invoices to create the illusion that Followone was thriving, even as the business racked up more than $350,000 in unpaid commercial office rent in Bellevue, according to Wisevoter. Prosecutors say the high-end leased offices were part of the effort to project the appearance of a major enterprise while the company's finances told a very different story.
Pastor Accused of Calling Refund-Seekers ‘Demonically Possessed’
When investors asked for their money back, authorities say Popescu told them they were demonically possessed. Prosecutors allege he funneled more than $4.5 million into accounts belonging to himself, his wife, and other family members, and that he personally drew more than $1 million in wages between 2017 and 2024. His wife was placed on Followone's payroll for roughly $300,000, despite prosecutors saying she never worked a single day for the company.
W. Mike Herrington, special agent in charge of the FBI's Seattle field office, said the charges allege a religious leader abused fellow believers' trust to steal millions for personal benefit. The investigation was led jointly by the FBI and the IRS Criminal Investigation division's Seattle field offices, according to the Department of Justice.
Facing Decades in Prison if Convicted
Popescu was charged with 10 counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum of 20 years in prison, while each money laundering count carries up to 10 years, alongside potential restitution and criminal forfeiture, WORLD reports. He also faces a potential fine of $250,000. The case is being prosecuted under Acting U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd for the Western District of Washington, with trial scheduled for December 21.
Popescu has pleaded not guilty and remains presumed innocent pending trial. It is unclear whether Passion for Christ Church continues to operate or whether Popescu still holds a pastoral role, and federal authorities have not detailed what asset forfeiture or victim restitution efforts may be underway.
A Familiar Pattern of Faith-Based Fraud in Washington
The case echoes another recent Washington prosecution: in January 2025, federal prosecutors indicted Francier Obando Pinillo, a former Pasco pastor, for allegedly defrauding more than 1,500 people out of $5.9 million through a fake cryptocurrency scheme he claimed God had revealed to him in a dream, according to the Department of Justice. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has long warned that so-called affinity fraud preys on close-knit faith communities, where perpetrators exploit spiritual trust and religious authority to bypass the skepticism that might otherwise protect investors.
Regulatory alerts from the SEC note that these schemes within religious groups often persist for years because victims delay reporting to law enforcement out of embarrassment, misplaced trust, or attempts to resolve disputes internally within the congregation. That dynamic, researchers say, can allow a scheme to keep drawing in new believers long after it should have unraveled.
