Alex Beckman, a tech founder from San Francisco, and his wife, Valerie Lau, were arrested last week. They are accused by officials of cheating investors out of over $60 million.
Beckman and Lau have been accused of several crimes, including securities fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and obstruction of justice. This lawsuit was filed last week in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Lau was a lawyer for Beckman’s company, ON Platform (previously called GameOn), from at least 2016 to 2024.
Beckman’s company creates AI software for customers, such as retail brands and major sports leagues.
The couple is accused of cheating investors in ON Platform by creating fake bank records and pretending to be business contacts, as stated in the lawsuit.
One time, when an investor asked to see a bank statement, Lau is said to have created a fake statement that showed an account balance of $13 million. He put it at the bank so that when Beckman and the investor got there, they would see that amount, according to authorities. The account had a real amount of $25.93 after Beckman supposedly sent $320,000 to a family member.
The supposed scheme happened from September 2018 to July 2024. The couple reportedly used over $4 million of investor money for personal expenses like private school fees, their wedding venue, and houses in San Francisco, according to a news release from the U.S. attorney’s office.
Beckman is accused of using the names of at least seven people without their permission to share fake financial information, according to authorities.
“The Bay Area has amazing creativity and dedicated business people, but innovation cannot thrive through dishonesty.” “Plans like the ones the defendants are accused of hurt our financial markets and deceive investors,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Robbins in a statement. “This indictment shows that we will look into and punish those who commit fraud.”
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