Settlement Spares David Jang’s Olivet Assembly From Racketeering Lawsuit

A settlement has spared the embattled World Olivet Assembly and Olivet University from a lawsuit over claims it engaged in racketeering with a network of small firms to defraud an e-commerce lender out of millions of dollars to fund the sect’s operations.

It was the latest development in more than a decade of legal challenges to hit evangelical cleric David Jang’s Olivet, whose Olivet University is under federal investigation over money laundering, visa fraud and labor trafficking, according to current and former officials with knowledge of the case. In 2020, Olivet University pleaded guilty to falsifying business records in connection with a money-laundering scheme.

The lawsuit was filed by Texas-based 8fig on August 10 against the World Olivet Assembly and 17 institutions and individuals it alleges worked in tandem to get money to fund the sect. It provided some of the most detailed allegations made to date over the internal workings of the sect, the university and their related businesses and media companies.

The terms of the settlement were not known.

“This network of entities and individuals conspired to and did defraud 8fig out of millions of dollars in furtherance of their enterprise via unlawful means,” says the lawsuit filed in Austin, Texas. The lawsuit alleged that over $6.5 million worth of funds were diverted to entities associated with the World Olivet Assembly.

According to attorneys for Olivet University, Olivet was not a party to the settlement although the case against it was dismissed, which, they said, “speaks for itself as to Olivet’s relation to this matter.”

8fig did not respond to Newsweek’s request for comment. The World Olivet Assembly and Olivet Assembly USA also did not respond.

Newsweek is owned by two former members of the Olivet sect. The two say they have resolved their differences but some of the legal disputes resulting from their break with Jang continue to play out in court.

8fig provides cash upfront to e-commerce businesses in exchange for a cut of future profits under an agreement that grants the lender viewing-only access to each merchant’s bank account and e-commerce platform.

8fig alleged that, rather than use the funds they had been lent for approved business expenses, the accused companies had transferred funds to other Olivet-related entities in what it termed the Community. The lawsuit alleged that once the funds had been transferred, the merchants terminated the bank account associated with 8fig and seemingly went out of business.

“The Merchants, Principals, Associated Entities, and the Community formed an association-in-fact enterprise which formed for the common goal of funding the Community’s operations through wire fraud and racketeering activity,” the lawsuit reads.

Olivet University and its peer institutions, Great Commission University and Jubilee University, were all defendants in the lawsuit alongside 10 e-commerce companies and Jonathan Park, former director of Olivet College of Journalism.

The suit lists examples in which it says Park and Yen-Yi Anderson, attorney and former Olivet professor, served as the trademark holder or trademark filer of the named businesses. Anderson was not listed as a defendant.

Park is listed as an owner or trademark holder affiliated with seven companies listed in the suit, in many cases on the grounds that the businesses sell Vassoul beauty products, of which he owns the trademark. Anderson registered the trademarks for Arishine, Luxros and EssyNaturals, brands also sold by some of the businesses.

Neither Park nor Anderson responded to Newsweek’s requests for comment. Jubilee University, Great Commission University and the four beauty product companies also did not respond.

This is not the first time that the operator of an e-commerce business with ties to Olivet has faced legal troubles.

In 2019, a North Carolina pastor was arrested, accused of possessing thousands of counterfeit Cartier bracelets. Pastor JianGang “Frank” Lan was a former Olivet University student, and his church was set up by a member of Olivet. Lan fled to his home country of China after his arrest and failed to make a 2022 court appearance.

Current and former law enforcement officials told Newsweek in June 2022 that Lan, who former Olivet members said is now working on Jang-related e-commerce in China, was suspected of being part of a “trade-based money laundering” scheme.

In its suit, 8fig alleged that the Community employs a variety of businesses to fund its ventures, spread its worldview and control the narrative that surrounds it. The Community refers to these businesses as its three “arks”: a media ark, a university ark and an e-commerce ark, the suit alleges.

“The Community uses various media platforms such as the IB Times [sic], Christian Media Corporation International, Christian Today, Christian Post, and Tech Times to generate revenue from ads as well as protect the Community’s image via the press,” it said. The suit said that Newsweek had been controlled by the Community, but no longer was. None of the media companies listed above responded to Newsweek’s requests for comment.

“These “arks” are a mere façade utilized by the Community to enrich its members, eliminate criticism, and provide ever expanding reach into the American populace,” the suit reads. “Ultimately, this scheme was intended to and did enrich Olivet World Assembly and its subsidiary entities to the direct detriment of 8fig.”