Hollywood director Carl Erik Rinsch got arrested on Tuesday in West Hollywood due to fraud and money laundering charges connected with $11 million funds he misused to develop a science fiction series that fell through.

The Deputy US Attorney Matthew Podolsky and FBI New York Field Office Assistant Director Leslie Backschies cited illegal actions involving an alleged Netflix system fraud project named White Horse.

Netflix Granted Rinsch $44 Million for White Horse

Court records show that Rinsch and Netflix reached their production agreement in 2018 which granted him $44 million to create White Horse. During the late part of 2019 he needed $11 million more money to finish the project according to authorities.

The prosecution says Rinsch did not put production funds into their intended purpose but transferred them through multiple accounts before putting them in his personal brokerage account.

According to legal documents White Horse production never started because Rinsch invested stolen money in high-risk financial activities and lost more than half of the funds in just two months. The filmmaker bought five Rolls-Royces and a Ferrari worth $2.4 million then wasted $1.79 million on credit cards and spent $1.1 million on court fees to pursue Netflix for more money.

The authorities accuse Carl Erik Rinsch of stealing millions by asking a streaming service to invest into his proposed television show. According to Podolsky the criminal actions in this case were not real. He spent the money not on business projects but on his own financial ventures such as stock options and crypto trading.

Rinsch Released on $100,000 Bail in Los Angeles

The record shows Rinsch made a comeback in the cryptocurrency market. A New York Times story earlier revealed that by May 2021 he transformed a $4 million Dogecoin investment to generate $27 million.

The 47-year-old filmmaker is facing two legal charges of wire fraud and money laundering that both have a potential 20-year prison sentence attached. He stands accused of five counts for handling stolen items which may end with 10 years in prison per charge.

Rinsch appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Pedro V. Castillo on Tuesday at a Los Angeles courthouse and received bail release for $100,000. The remaining court date for his New York appearance will be finalized after his current proceedings in Los Angeles.

Officials keep probing the crime to identify all elements of the suspected financial fraud scheme. The court will send Rinsch to prison for a long time because he took series production funds that remained unused.