---
type: court_doc
id: "court_ctb_1604_1"
court: "CTB"
case_no: "22-50073"
doc_number: 1604
doc_type: "EXHIBIT"
filed_date: "2023-03-27"
lang: "en"
machine_translated: false
url: "https://mubeitech.com/en/court/court_ctb_1604_1"
json_url: "https://mubeitech.com/api/court/court_ctb_1604_1"
---
# Guo Wengui / Miles Guo — bankruptcy case · EXHIBIT · ECF #1604-1



Exhibit 1

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 2 of

·1　Page 1

·2· ·UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
·3· ·DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT
·4· ·BRIDGEPORT DIVISION
·5· ·---------------------------------------X
·6· ·In Re:
· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·Chapter 11
·7· · · · · · ·HO WAN KWOK,· · · · · · · · · Case No.
· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·22-50073 (JAM)
·8· · · · · · · · · · · ·Debtor.
·9· ·---------------------------------------X

11· · · · · · ·VIDEOTAPED DEPOSITION OF MEI GUO
12· · · · · · · · ·Friday, January 20, 2023

15· ·Reported by:
16· ·Angela M. Shaw-Crockett, CCR, CRR, RMR, CSR
17· ·Job No. 221677

Page 2 ·1 ·2 ·3· · · · · · · · ·January 20, 2023 ·4· · · · · · · · ·10:34 a.m. ·5 ·6· ·VIDEOTAPED DEPOSITION OF MEI GUO, held at Chiesa ·7· ·Shahinian & Giantomasi, 11 Times Square, New York, ·8· ·New York, before Angela M. Shaw-Crockett, a ·9· ·Certified Court Reporter, Certified Realtime 10· ·Reporter, Registered Merit Reporter and Notary 11· ·Public of the States of New York, New Jersey, 12· ·and Connecticut. 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 4 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·A P P E A R A N C E S:
·3· ·PAUL HASTINGS LLP
· · · · · · Attorneys for TRUSTEE
·4· · · · · 200 Park Avenue
· · · · · · New York, New York 10166
·5　· · ·BY:·
AVRAM LUFT, ESQ.
·6· · · · DOUGLASS BARRON, ESQ.
·7
·8· ·CHIESA SHAHINIAN & GIANTOMASI PC
· · · · · · Attorneys for HK INTERNATIONAL
·9· · · · · MEI GUO
· · · · · · One Boland Drive
10· · · · · West Orange, New Jersey 07052
11· ·BY:· ·LEE VARTAN, ESQ.

13· ·ZEISLER & ZEISLER, P.C.
· · · · · · Attorneys for HK INTERNATIONAL
14· · · · · MEI GUO
· · · · · · 10 Middle Street
15· · · · · Bridgeport, Connecticut 06604
16· ·BY:· ·AARON ROMNEY, ESQ.

18· ·ALSO PRESENT:·
Chris Johnson, The Videographer
19· · · · · · · · · Luyi Song, Law Clerk, Paul Hastings
20· · · · · · · · · Jingyi Wang, Mandarin Interpreter
21· · · · · · · · · Una Wilkinson, Mandarin Check Interpreter
22· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·**

Page 4 ·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo ·2· · · · THE VIDEOGRAPHER:· We are now on the ·3· ·record.· This is the start of media labeled ·4· ·number 1 of the video-recorded deposition of ·5· ·Mei Guo in the matter in reference to ·6· ·Ho Wan Kwok in the United States Bankruptcy ·7· ·Court, District of Connecticut, Bridgeport ·8· ·Division, Chapter 11, Case Number 22-50073 ·9· ·(JAM). 10· · · · This deposition is being held at Chiesa 11· ·Shahinian & Giantomasi PC, 11 Times Square, 12· ·34th Floor, New York, New York 10001. 13· · · · Today is Friday, January 20, 2023.· The 14· ·time on the video monitor is approximately 15· ·10:34 a.m. 16· · · · My name is Chris Johnson.· I'm the legal 17· ·video specialist from TSG Reporting 18· ·Incorporated, headquartered at 228 East 45th 19· ·Street, Suite 810, New York, New York 10017. 20· · · · The court reporter today is 21· ·Angela Shaw-Crockett, also in association with 22· ·TSG Reporting. 23· · · · Would all counsel present please introduce 24· ·yourselves and the parties you represent. 25· · · · MR. LUFT:· My name is Avi Luft.· I'm with

Page 5 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · the law firm of Paul Hastings.· I represent the ·3· · · · Chapter 11 Trustee in this matter. ·4· · · · · · ·With me are my colleague, Doug Barron, and ·5· · · · law clerk Luyi Song. ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Good morning.· Lee Vartan ·7· · · · from the law firm of Chiesa Shahinian & ·8· · · · Giantomasi.· We won't hold that against the ·9· · · · videographer.· We just go by "CSG law."· And I 10· · · · represent both HKI and Mei Guo. 11· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:· My name is Aaron Romney. I'm 12· · · · with Zeisler & Zeisler.· I represent Ms. Guo, 13· · · · HK International.· I also represent the debtor 14· · · · in this proceeding, Mr. Miles Kwok. 15· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:· Can she put her mask back 16· · · · on? 17· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:· Will the court reporter 18· · · · please swear in the witness and the 19· · · · interpreters, and we may proceed. 20· ·J I N G Y I· ·W A N G, 21· · · · · having been first duly sworn by a Notary 22· · · · · Public within and for the State of New 23· · · · · York, translated the questions from 24· · · · · English to Mandarin and the answers 25· · · · · from Mandarin to English under oath as

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 6

·2· · · · · follows:
·3· · Mei Guo, having been called as a witness, having been first
·4· ·duly sworn (through an interpreter),·
was examined and
·5· ·testified as follows:·
EXAMINATION
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Good morning, Ms. Guo.·
How are you?
·8· · · · A.· ·Very well, thank you.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, my understanding is that you're
10· ·going to testify in Mandarin today, which is great,
11· ·but I also understand that you understand some
12· ·English.
13· · · · · · ·Just so we have a clear record, I ask that
14· ·we just do one or the other.·
So to the extent we're
15· ·going to use the translator, please wait for the
16· ·translator even if you understand my question in
17· ·English.
18· · · · · · ·Is that okay?
19· · · · A.· ·Okay.·
Thank you.
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Before we go on, one quick
21· · · · clarification.
22· · · · · · ·Mr. Romney, are you appearing for the
23· · · · debtor for this deposition, or were you just
24· · · · stating that you, in other matters, having to
25· · · · represent the debtor?

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 8 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 7

·2· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:·
That's a fair point.·
The
·3· · · · debtor is not a party to this proceeding, so I
·4· · · · will -- I'm appearing for Ms. Guo -- Guo and
·5· · · · HK International today.
·6· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Got it.
·7· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:·
Thank you.
·8· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Great.
·9· ·BY MR. LUFT:
10· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, could I ask you to just state
11· ·your name for the record.
12· · · · A.· ·In English?
13· · · · Q.· ·Please, if you can.
14· · · · A.· ·Mei Guo, M-E-I G-U-O.
15· · · · Q.· ·And Ms. Guo, what is your current
16· ·residence?
17· · · · A.· ·I live in New York.
18· · · · Q.· ·+ Could you please give me what address
19· ·you live in?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
We would just -- for the
21· · · · record, we'd object to giving her exact address
22· · · · for security reasons.
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
If you'd like to mark it as --
24· · · · under the protective order as confidential or
25· · · · highly confidential, I'm happy to do so, but I

·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo
·2· ·think the witness needs to answer the question.
·3· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
I don't know why her precise
·4· ·address in New York City is important.·
She
·5· ·lives in the city.·
She's made that
·6· ·representation on the record.·
I don't know
·7· ·that we need to go deeper than that.
·8· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Well, when you do an
·9· ·examination, you can choose to go as deep as
10· ·you like.·
I think it's important that we know
11· ·what address she lives at, and I'm entitled to
12· ·know it.
13· · · · And I'm happy to mark it as highly
14· ·confidential, as we're doing with all other
15· ·information that's sensitive in the case, but
16· ·I'd ask the witness to answer the question.
17· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
I'll let the translator speak
18· ·first and then I'll respond.
19· · · · I was going to say in response, maybe we
20· ·can move on and address this at a break.
I
21· ·don't want to interrupt the beginning of the
22· ·deposition, but I think you know that Ms. Guo
23· ·travels with security.
24· · · · In New York's Supreme Court,
25· ·Justice Ostrager took the rather extraordinary

·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 9

·2· ·measure of closing the courtroom when Ms. Guo
·3· ·testified.·
So there are real security concerns
·4· ·here.
·5· · · · I understand the confidentiality order,
·6· ·but we don't really see the relevance of her
·7· ·personal address in New York City.
·8· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, you're new to the
·9· ·case.·
Her mother has testified as to her
10· ·address.·
Her father has testified as to his
11· ·address.·
I assume they have the exact same
12· ·security concerns, handled the same way.
I
13· ·don't understand why Ms. Guo would need a
14· ·special dispensation that's been different than
15· ·her mother and father.
16· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
The only difference here is
17· ·my understanding is the address is already in
18· ·the public domain, meaning the Greenwich home
19· ·and the Sherry-Netherland are known.
20· · · · I don't believe that Ms. Guo's address has
21· ·ever been made known in any form or fashion.
22· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, I'd ask that she --
23· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Let the interpreter -- thank
24· ·you.
25· · · · So again, I don't want to interrupt the

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 11 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 10
·2· ·flow of the deposition, and I'm happy to
·3· ·address this at a break, but I think we can
·4· ·move on for now and come back to it.
·5· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, I find this to be
·6· ·obstructive and improper.
·7· · · · Are you instructing your witness not to
·8· ·answer my question?
·9· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
So at this time, I'm
10· ·instructing her not to answer.·
We can address
11· ·it at a break if need be.
12· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, there's nothing to
13· ·address at the break.·
I asked a perfectly
14· ·appropriate question.·
I've conceded that
15· ·you're welcome to use the protective order in
16· ·place.
17· · · · If you'd like to seek relief from the
18· ·court, to get her -- to get a protective order
19· ·for her to not answer the question, you're
20· ·welcome to do so.·
Otherwise, I think it's
21· ·improper for you to instruct her not to answer
22· ·a question because it does not relate to any
23· ·privilege.

24· · · · And accordingly, I'm going to hold the 25· ·deposition open on this issue because she's not

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 12 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 11

·2· · · · answering, and I'm going to move on.
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Thank you.
·4· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I encourage you to seek relief
·5· · · · from the Court if you want to.
·6· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
I didn't catch the --
·7· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I said Mr. Vartan, if he wants
·8· · · · to direct the witness not to answer a question
·9· · · · for nonprivilege reasons, he needs to seek
10· · · · relief from the Court.
11· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:·
Thank you.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, how long have you lived at your
14· ·current residence?
15· · · · A.· ·Two years.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you live by yourself or with other
17· ·family members?
18· · · · A.· ·By myself.
19· · · · Q.· ·Do you own your apartment -- or let me
20· ·strike that.
21· · · · · · ·What type of home is it?
22· · · · A.· ·An apartment.
23· · · · Q.· ·Are you the owner of the apartment?
24· · · · A.· ·No.
25· · · · Q.· ·Who is the owner of the apartment that you

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 12

·2· ·live in?
·3· · · · A.· ·The landowner.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Who is the landowner?
·5· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.
·6· · · · Q.· ·You don't know whose apartment you live
·7· ·in?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't remember the name of my landowner.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you pay rent to your landowner?
12· · · · A.· ·Yes.
13· · · · Q.· ·What is the entity to whom you write rent
14· ·checks?
15· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you pay your own rent or does someone
17· ·pay it for you?
18· · · · A.· ·I pay my own rent.
19· · · · Q.· ·How do you pay?
20· · · · A.· ·By check.
21· · · · Q.· ·Is that check being drawn from a personal
22· ·bank account or a corporate bank account?
23· · · · A.· ·In personal account.
24· · · · Q.· ·What funds you to use to pay for your
25· ·rent?

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 14 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 13

·2· · · · A.· ·Just from my personal bank account.
·3· · · · Q.· ·What is the source of those funds in the
·4· ·bank account?
·5· · · · A.· ·I have my own work.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　What do you do for work?
·7· · · · A.· ·I'm currently an entrepreneur.·
I'm a film
·8· ·director, producer, and scriptwriter.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Have you sold any scripts?
10· · · · A.· ·No.
11· · · · Q.· ·Have you directed films for anyone other
12· ·than yourself?
13· · · · A.· ·Yes, back in China.
14· · · · Q.· ·When you were living in China?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes.
16· · · · Q.· ·When was the last film you directed?
17· · · · A.· ·Are you referring to a short movie or just
18· ·a regular movie that comes out in the theater?
19· · · · Q.· ·Why don't we take it in pieces.
20· · · · · · ·I'll first ask about any film you directed
21· ·for someone else.
22· · · · A.· ·I can't remember the specifics.·
That was
23· ·when I was in China.·
Together with another
24· ·director, we did one film.
25· · · · Q.· ·Were you paid to direct the film?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 14

·2· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·3· · · · Q.· ·How much were you paid to direct that
·4· ·film?
·5· · · · A.· ·I can't remember specifically, but
·6· ·approximately over 100,000 RMB.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall when you directed that film?
·8· · · · A.· ·It was probably in 2013 or 2014.·
I'm not
·9· ·quite sure.·
But I think probably 2014.
10· · · · Q.· ·Have you directed any films since you left
11· ·China?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm just going to object to
13· · · · this line of questioning.·
I'm happy to put a
14· · · · standing objection on the record.·
I gave
15· · · · counsel some latitude, but all of these
16· · · · questions really seem to me to be beyond the
17· · · · scope of why we're here, which is in
18· · · · anticipation of the PJR proceeding.
19· · · · · · ·So what Ms. Guo may have done in China in
20· · · · 2013 or 2014 really just bears absolutely no
21· · · · relevance to anything that will be before the
22· · · · court.
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·You can answer my question.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · A.· ·Sorry.·
I can't remember what the question
·3· ·was.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Have you directed any films since you left
·5· ·China?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Same objection.
·7· · · · · · ·Just, Mr. Luft, are you comfortable with
·8· · · · me posing a standing objection or do you want
·9· · · · me to object to every question?
10· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'm not comfortable with your
11· · · · speaking objections.·
But I don't know how --
12· · · · since I'm going to ask different questions, I
13· · · · don't know what type of standing objection
14· · · · you're asking for.
15· · · · · · ·Are you saying you'd like a standing
16· · · · objection to every question I ask?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Every question that's beyond
18· · · · the scope of the PJR proceeding.·
I'm happy to
19· · · · object question by question.
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
You can just say "Objection,
21· · · · form," and that will be sufficient.
22· · · · · · ·Particularly given the translator today,
23· · · · let's not waste time with speaking objections.
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Well, I'd ask that we not
25· · · · waste time on irrelevant material.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 16

·2· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, you've said it to
·3· · · · your witness multiple times --
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm speaking to you.
·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
It's not irrelevant.·
Okay?
·6· · · · Again, I don't know if this is because you're
·7· · · · brand new to the case or not.·
But the source
·8· · · · of her funds and how she pays for things are
·9· · · · dead set in the middle of this case.
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Not in the counterclaim I've
11· · · · read.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, have you been paid to direct any
14· ·films since the last one you told me about in China
15· ·which you said was in approximately 2013 to 2014?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·No.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·You also say you've produced films.
20· · · · · · ·Have you produced any films since you left
21· ·China?
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
23· · · · A.· ·There's been a lot together with others,
24· ·but these films are all independent films through
25· ·students.

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 18 of 211

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 17

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·So they're student films?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·5· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Have you earned any money from producing
·8· ·these student films?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Same objection.
10· · · · A.· ·No.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Other than acting as a film producer, a
13· ·director, and a scriptwriter, is there any other way
14· ·that you have earned income or funds since you have
15· ·moved to the United States?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·Yes.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·How else have you earned income or funds?
20· · · · A.· ·I've been the CEO of Pangu Plaza since
21· ·2016, so I've always been earning a salary.
22· · · · Q.· ·Where is Pangu Plaza?
23· · · · A.· ·It's in Beijing, China, on number -- the
24· ·address is number 27 Chaoyang Road.
25· · · · Q.· ·And you're currently the CEO of

Page 18 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·Pangu Plaza? ·3· · · · A.· ·Yes. ·4· · · · Q.· ·How much are you paid as CEO of ·5· ·Pangu Plaza? ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·7· · · · A.· ·So the annual salary plus bonus, I can't ·8· ·remember very clearly, but approximately ·9· ·1.45 million. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Is that dollars? 12· · · · A.· ·I wished it were.· But it's in RMB. 13· · · · Q.· ·Who owns Pangu Plaza? 14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 15· · · · A.· ·Family fund. 16· ·BY MR. LUFT: 17· · · · Q.· ·Who runs that family fund? 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 19· · · · A.· ·Many family members. 20· ·BY MR. LUFT: 21· · · · Q.· ·What's the name of the family fund? 22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 23· · · · A.· ·It's just called "family fund." 24· ·BY MR. LUFT: 25· · · · Q.· ·So the person who employs you has no name

Page 19 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·other than family fund? ·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, misstates the ·4· · · · testimony. ·5· · · · A.· ·My employer is not an individual.· It's a ·6· ·fund.· It's a business of my family. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·What I want to know is what is the name of ·9· ·that business that hires you? 10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 11· · · · A.· ·So what I was mentioning, referring to 12· ·previously, is called Pangu Group.· So that is a 13· ·business, and that is a part of my family's 14· ·business. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·When you say your family's business, who 17· ·in your family is involved with the Pangu Group? 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 19· · · · A.· ·My uncles and also my cousins from my 20· ·father's side, and brothers specifically, and also 21· ·myself. 22· ·BY MR. LUFT: 23· · · · Q.· ·So your brother, yourself, and uncles and 24· ·cousins all on your father's side; is that correct? 25· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:· Correction from the

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 21 of

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · interpreter.·
The witness was saying these
·3· · · · cousins are male cousins, not cousins plus
·4· · · · brothers, but rather my uncles, my cousins,
·5· · · · male cousins specifically.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Let's clarify.
·8· · · · · · ·Is your brother involved with the
·9· ·Pangu Group?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
11· · · · A.· ·No.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·+ Which of your uncles is involved with
14· ·the Pangu Group?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm going to object and
16· · · · further instruct the witness not to answer.·
At
17· · · · this point, we're so far afield of why we're
18· · · · here today that I just don't see the relevance
19· · · · of any of this.
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, I find it
21· · · · unfortunate that you've decided to appear on
22· · · · this case simply to obstruct.·
Clearly that's
23· · · · your intention.
24· · · · · · ·The questions about who -- her family's
25· · · · involvement and how their businesses

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 21
·2· ·interconnect are at the heart of this matter.
·3· ·If you read the counterclaims, you would know
·4· ·that's exactly what is at issue.
·5· · · · I'd ask you to stop objecting on baseless
·6· ·grounds.
·7· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
I'm not objecting on baseless
·8· ·grounds.·
And I'm trying not to obstruct the
·9· ·deposition.
10· · · · But at the end of the day, as I understand
11· ·it, we're here today because you're exploring
12· ·any connections between HKI and the debtor, and
13· ·then any connections between HKI and Himalaya.
14· · · · Whatever was happening around Pangu has
15· ·nothing to do with the PJR proceeding.·
This is
16· ·not a general deposition in the bankruptcy.
17· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, it is not for you
18· ·to decide which topics I'm allowed to ask about
19· ·in this.
20· · · · If you read the counterclaims, right,
21· ·which I'm sure you have, you know that there's
22· ·many allegations regarding multiple family
23· ·businesses other than HKI and Himalaya,
24· ·correct?
25· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
We're not here on a

Page 22 ·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo ·2· ·general -- ·3· · · · MR. LUFT:· It's not about general.· These ·4· ·are the counterclaims in this case. ·5· · · · MR. VARTAN:· It has nothing do with any of ·6· ·the other business.· It has to do with HKI. ·7· ·She's happy to answer any questions you have ·8· ·about her businesses. ·9· · · · MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan, my questions go to 10· ·HKI.· They go to where she gets her money.· It 11· ·goes to all of this.· It's directly at issue in 12· ·the counterclaims, directly at issue as to our 13· ·ability to prove our case. 14· · · · I'd ask you to stop interfering with the 15· ·deposition. 16· · · · MR. VARTAN:· I'm not interfering.· I'm 17· ·trying to keep the deposition on target. 18· ·You've not asked one question about HKI. 19· · · · MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan, I am literally on 20· ·the first page of my introduction.· I promise 21· ·you, we will ask about HKI.· Okay? 22· · · · MR. VARTAN:· I'd ask that you do it sooner 23· ·than later, otherwise we'll be here all day 24· ·speaking about -- 25· · · · MR. LUFT:· I'm sorry about your day.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 23

·2· ·Okay?·
But this is what we're going to do, and
·3· ·I'm going to ask my questions how I want to ask
·4· ·them.
·5· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Please proceed.
·6· · · · THE INTERPRETER:·
Regarding the
·7· ·communication, would you like the interpreter
·8· ·to interpret the communication just now?
·9· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Please.
10· · · · THE INTERPRETER:·
Do you mind, Angie --
11· · · · MR. LUFT:·
I find this to just be time
12· ·wasted.·
I'm going to reserve for additional
13· ·time.
14· · · · THE INTERPRETER:·
Sorry, Angie.·
Do you
15· ·mind going back to where the communication just
16· ·stopped and the interpreter stopped
17· ·interpreting?
18· · · · (A discussion was held off the record.)
19· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, what is the purpose
20· ·of having all of this translated -- what is the
21· ·purpose of requiring the interpreter to go back
22· ·to go through our colloquy back and forth other
23· ·than to waste time on the record?
24· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Not to waste time.·
I want to
25· ·be sure that the witness fully understands and

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 24

·2· · · · appreciates what's happening at the deposition.
·3· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Your witness speaks English.
·4· · · · If she wants to testify in Mandarin, that's
·5· · · · fine, but you're wasting time.
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You don't tell me what
·7· · · · language my witness speaks.·
I've communicated
·8· · · · with my client and witness with the aid of an
·9· · · · interpreter in preparation for today's
10· · · · deposition.·
You don't dictate to me what
11· · · · language she speaks.
12· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, keep wasting time.
13· · · · · · ·(Interpreter read record.)
14· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
I'm done.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you speak and understand some
17· ·English, correct?
18· · · · A.· ·Yes.
19· · · · Q.· ·Do you speak English with friends?
20· · · · A.· ·Yes.
21· · · · Q.· ·Can you read English?
22· · · · A.· ·Some.
23· · · · Q.· ·Okay.
24· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'll note for the record that
25· · · · what I can see on the live feed, that

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Page 25 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · translation exercise of just the colloquy took ·3· · · · almost five minutes. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, is your brother involved with the ·6· ·Pangu Group? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, asked and ·8· · · · answered. ·9· · · · A.· ·No. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·+ Which of your uncles is involved with 12· ·the Pangu Group? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection and instruction. 14· · · · · · ·I'm instructing you not to answer which 15· · · · particular family members. 16· ·BY MR. LUFT: 17· · · · Q.· ·Which of your cousins are involved with 18· ·the Pangu Group? 19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Let me strike that. 20· ·BY MR. LUFT: 21· · · · Q.· ·Are you going to follow your counsel's 22· ·instruction? 23· · · · A.· ·Yes. 24· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· And that basis of that 25· · · · instruction is not privilege, correct?

Page 26 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· The basis of that is security ·3· · · · interest. ·4· · · · · · ·(Reporter requests clarification.) ·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· You said the basis of that is ·6· · · · the security interest for the family, correct? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Correct. ·8· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Again, the issues about ·9· · · · security can be addressed under the protective 10· · · · order.· You can mark it as highly confidential, 11· · · · but you cannot instruct the witness not to 12· · · · answer because, you believe, of any security 13· · · · concerns. 14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Understood.· I'm instructing 15· · · · her not to answer for now. 16· · · · · · ·Happy to revisit it at the break. 17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan -- 18· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:· Can I speak? 19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· No.· Only when a question is 20· · · · pending. 21· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:· Okay. 22· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· There is a question pending. 23· · · · · · ·You're welcome to answer the question. 24· · · · A.· ·What was the question again?· I can't 25· ·remember.

Page 27 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Which of your uncles are involved in the ·4· ·Pangu Group? ·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Same objection. ·6· · · · A.· ·So thank you so much for the reminder ·7· ·because this case is open to the public in China. ·8· ·So I can answer this question. ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Oh, okay.· In that case, 10· · · · please proceed. 11· · · · A.· ·So before I started to take the position 12· ·there, my uncles, including the fourth older brother 13· ·of my father, the fifth older brother of my father, 14· ·and the sixth older brother of my father, managed 15· ·Pangu together. 16· ·BY MR. LUFT: 17· · · · Q.· ·And then once you were hired, they stopped 18· ·managing it? 19· · · · A.· ·So I want to explain the situation back 20· ·then.· It's not just that I was hired, but rather, 21· ·all of my family members were put into prison by the 22· ·communist party.· And when they came back out, they 23· ·all had health issues.· And one was even admitted 24· ·into a psychology hospital. 25· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Psychiatric.

Page 28 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:· Correction.· It's not a ·3· · · · psychological hospital.· It's a psychiatric. ·4· · · · A.· ·So there was nobody managing the business. ·5· ·So I volunteered to do it. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·What are the names of your fourth, fifth, ·8· ·and sixth older brother uncles? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Older brother uncles? I 10· · · · don't understand. 11· · · · A.· ·I really don't remember their names. I 12· ·never called them by their names. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· And you mentioned cousins. 15· · · · · · ·+ What are the names of your cousins who 16· ·are involved at the Pangu Group? 17· · · · A.· ·I'm really sorry because my cousins have 18· ·never disclosed their names to the public.· So I 19· ·don't want to name them. 20· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Well, we can mark this as highly 21· ·confidential. 22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I'll instruct the witness not 23· · · · to answer. 24· ·BY MR. LUFT: 25· · · · Q.· ·Are you going to follow your counsel's

Page 29 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·instruction? ·3· · · · A.· ·I really don't want to answer this ·4· ·question. ·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· And you're not instructing her ·6· · · · on the grounds of privilege, correct? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Not on the grounds of ·8· · · · privilege. ·9· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· What is the basis? 10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Same basis as before, that 11· · · · there are real and genuine security concerns 12· · · · which she's now repeatedly expressed on the 13· · · · record for her family and her extended family 14· · · · in China. 15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan, I've heard you 16· · · · express it many times on the record.· Not the 17· · · · witness. 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Well, we can ask her about 19· · · · it. 20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I don't. 21· ·BY MR. LUFT: 22· · · · Q.· ·Putting aside who managed the building 23· ·before you, who are the members of the family fund 24· ·that pay you the salary to run Pangu Plaza? 25· · · · A.· ·In our family fund, there are over 100

Page 30 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·family members. ·3· · · · Q.· ·Is anyone in charge of the family fund? ·4· · · · A.· ·No.· It's under co-management. ·5· · · · Q.· ·Do all 100 people have equal votes or does ·6· ·someone have more of a say than another? ·7· · · · A.· ·Whoever makes a bigger contribution to the ·8· ·family fund will have a bigger say. ·9· · · · Q.· ·Who's made the biggest contributions to 10· ·the family fund? 11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 12· · · · A.· ·I think it's me at the moment. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·How much have you contributed to the 15· ·family fund? 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection.· If you understand 17· · · · what "contribution" means. 18· · · · A.· ·My understanding of a contribution is 19· ·starting from 2016, when there was no one managing 20· ·Pangu Group, I brought the business back.· And over 21· ·the past years since then, I've made the biggest 22· ·contribution. 23· ·BY MR. LUFT: 24· · · · Q.· ·Is that a monetary contribution or just a 25· ·contribution of your time?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 31

·2· · · · A.· ·Both.·
And I made a lot of money.
·3· · · · Q.· ·How much money have you contributed to the
·4· ·family fund?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember specifically, but ever
·6· ·since 2016, I've broken the record of the highest
·7· ·amount earned through Pangu Hotel and the rent.
·8· · · · Q.· ·So you're saying the business has done
·9· ·well?
10· · · · A.· ·Yes, the business of Pangu Group, correct.
11· · · · Q.· ·Who has made the biggest personal
12· ·contribution in terms of funds contributed into the
13· ·family fund?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· · · · · · ·Once again, if you understand that
16· · · · question, but --
17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, please stop with
18· · · · your speaking objections.
19· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure about this answer.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Have you contributed any money, not in
22· ·terms of what you've helped the company earn, but
23· ·have you contributed any money into the family fund?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
25· · · · A.· ·No.

Page 32 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Who in your family has contributed the ·4· ·most money into the family fund? ·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·6· · · · A.· ·I really don't know. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·To be clear, what other assets other than ·9· ·Pangu Plaza does the family fund hold? 10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 11· · · · A.· ·There's Pangu Group and Jung Chen Group. 12· · · · · · ·There's a Pangu Group and the 13· ·Zenith Group. 14· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:· Spelled Z-N-I-T-H.· Or 15· · · · it might be spelled as Z-E-N-I-T-H.· I'm not 16· · · · quite sure. 17· ·BY MR. LUFT: 18· · · · Q.· ·Other than Pangu Plaza, what other assets 19· ·do any of those entities own? 20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 21· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 22· ·BY MR. LUFT: 23· · · · Q.· ·Can you name, other than yourself, the 24· ·name of any family member involved in the family 25· ·fund?

Page 33 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, asked and ·3· · · · answered. ·4· · · · A.· ·I've already answered this question just ·5· ·now.· I really don't want to review the names of my ·6· ·family members here. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you know the names of any family ·9· ·members other than yourself that are involved in 10· ·this family fund? 11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 12· · · · A.· ·I know some. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·How many? 15· · · · A.· ·I can't remember. 16· · · · Q.· ·And you won't tell me their names? 17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Let me just say, to the 18· · · · extent that you're comfortable sharing names 19· · · · such that it's not going to implicate security 20· · · · concerns, I certainly have no objection with 21· · · · you sharing names. 22· · · · A.· ·I just mentioned the fourth, fifth, and 23· ·sixth older brothers of my dad.· I really can't 24· ·remember their names.· You can look it up.· And then 25· ·there's myself, my older brother.

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Page 34 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·As for other people, I really want to ·3· ·protect their privacy. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·So your older brother is involved in the ·6· ·family fund? ·7· · · · A.· ·Yes. ·8· · · · Q.· ·But is your father involved in the family ·9· ·fund? 10· · · · A.· ·No. 11· · · · Q.· ·How about your mother? 12· · · · A.· ·No. 13· · · · Q.· ·How did your uncles earn the money that 14· ·enabled them to buy Pangu Plaza? 15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 16· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 17· ·BY MR. LUFT: 18· · · · Q.· ·When was Pangu Plaza purchased? 19· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 20· · · · Q.· ·Do you know what funds were used, the 21· ·source of -- sorry. 22· · · · · · ·Do you know the source of any of the funds 23· ·used to purchase Pangu Plaza? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, asked and 25· · · · answered.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 35

·2· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·How do you manage Pangu Plaza from the
·5· ·United States?
·6· · · · A.· ·I hold videoconferences on a weekly basis
·7· ·with them.·
And I've also authorized my manager to
·8· ·take care of management, and they also regularly
·9· ·send me forms.
10· · · · Q.· ·Who do you hold videoconferences with?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Again, I just want to
12· · · · interpose an objection this is very far afield
13· · · · of why we're here.
14· · · · A.· ·That would be the current department
15· ·managers.
16· ·BY MR. LUFT:
17· · · · Q.· ·What forms do you sign?
18· · · · A.· ·Do you mean currently?
19· · · · Q.· ·As part of your role running Pangu Plaza.
20· · · · A.· ·I haven't signed any forms in recent
21· ·years.
22· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever been deposed before?
23· · · · A.· ·No.
24· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you understand you're testifying
25· ·under oath?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 36

·2· · · · A.· ·Yes, I understand.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Is there any reason you can't give
·4· ·truthful testimony today?
·5· · · · A.· ·No.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I want to ask you questions.·
If
·7· ·for some reason you don't understand my questions,
·8· ·will you let me know?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, could we have an agreement that
11· ·to the extent I ask you a question and you do not
12· ·tell me that you're having trouble understanding it,
13· ·then I can assume that you do understand my
14· ·question?
15· · · · A.· ·Okay.
16· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, who did you speak to to prepare
17· ·for this deposition?
18· · · · A.· ·My counsels.
19· · · · Q.· ·Is that Mr. Vartan and Mr. Romney?
20· · · · A.· ·Yes.
21· · · · Q.· ·Did you speak with any other counsel?
22· · · · A.· ·No.
23· · · · Q.· ·Did you speak with any family members?
24· · · · A.· ·No.
25· · · · Q.· ·Did you review any documents in

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 37

·2· ·preparation for this deposition?
·3· · · · A.· ·I did review some together with my
·4· ·counsels.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Did any of those documents refresh your
·6· ·recollection?
·7· · · · A.· ·I don't quite understand what that means.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Did any of those documents, when you
·9· ·looked at them, help you remember something that you
10· ·had not previously remembered?
11· · · · A.· ·Yes, some.
12· · · · Q.· ·Which documents were those?
13· · · · A.· ·I can't remember now.
14· · · · Q.· ·If you remember during the deposition,
15· ·will you let me know?
16· · · · A.· ·Okay.
17· · · · Q.· ·And if I show you a document that was one
18· ·of the ones that refreshed your recollection, can I
19· ·ask you to let me know that as well?
20· · · · A.· ·Okay.
21· · · · Q.· ·Pangu Plaza has not been seized by the
22· ·Chinese government?
23· · · · A.· ·Last year, they did drive all of the staff
24· ·members and my grandfather on my dad's side onto the
25· ·street.·
I can't remember exactly in which month

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 39

·2· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Do you know if all responsive documents in
·4· ·connection with this litigation have been produced
·5· ·to the trustee?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·7· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·8· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·9· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, what was the last school you
10· ·attended?
11· · · · A.· ·Because the last time I testified in
12· ·New York, my information was disclosed online and
13· ·some teachers told me that they were harassed.·
So
14· ·in order to protect them, I don't want to say the
15· ·name.
16· · · · Q.· ·+ We can mark this under the protective
17· ·order.·
But I just need to know, what is the last
18· ·school you attended?
19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
If the witness has safety
20· · · · concerns or security concerns for herself or
21· · · · loved ones, I'd instruct her not to answer.
22· · · · A.· ·Can I just try and understand what is the
23· ·protection order you're mentioning, you refer to?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'll speak with her about
25· · · · that on a break.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 40

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·What is the highest degree you've earned
·4· ·in school?
·5· · · · A.· ·University graduate.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Where was that school located?
·7· · · · A.· ·New York.
·8· · · · Q.· ·What type of degree did you graduate with?
·9· · · · A.· ·BA.
10· · · · Q.· ·And what was your major?
11· · · · A.· ·Director.
12· · · · Q.· ·Was it film school?
13· · · · A.· ·Yes.
14· · · · Q.· ·What year did you graduate from film
15· ·school?
16· · · · A.· ·2012 or '13.·
I think it was 2013
17· ·probably.
18· · · · Q.· ·How many years did you go to school in
19· ·New York to earn that degree?
20· · · · · · ·CHECK INTERPRETER:·
She said "12
21· · · · probably."
22· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Sorry.·
Correction:
23· · · · "It's 2012 or 2013.·
And I think it's 2012."
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·And how many years were you in school

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 41

·2· ·before you earned your degree?
·3· · · · A.· ·It's four years of the University program
·4· ·and one year in language school.
·5· · · · Q.· ·And were you living in New York during
·6· ·those five years?
·7· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·8· · · · Q.· ·So that would have been 2007 through 2012?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·Prior to attending college, did you direct
11· ·any films?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
13· · · · A.· ·No.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·When you graduated -- was the school NYU
16· ·which you went to?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
18· · · · A.· ·No.
19· ·BY MR. LUFT:
20· · · · Q.· ·When you graduated film school in 2012,
21· ·did you stay in New York?
22· · · · A.· ·I did stay and shot several films, and
23· ·then I went back to China.
24· · · · Q.· ·How long were you in New York after
25· ·graduating before going back to China?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 42

·2· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.·
Probably several
·3· ·months.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Less than a year?
·5· · · · A.· ·I really can't remember.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　Who paid for film school?
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·8· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.
·9· ·BY MR. LUFT:
10· · · · Q.· ·Did you take loans to go to film school?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
12· · · · A.· ·No.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·Did her father and mother pay for her
15· ·college?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·So just so I understand, prior to going to
20· ·film school, where did you live?
21· · · · A.· ·I studied in quite several apartments, all
22· ·in New York.
23· · · · Q.· ·My question wasn't clear.
24· · · · · · ·Before you went to film school, so before
25· ·2007, what country did you live in?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 43

·2· · · · A.· ·I was in China.·
Sometimes in Hong Kong.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Did your family have homes in China and
·4· ·Hong Kong at that time?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·In China, yes.·
But not in Hong Kong.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Where did you stay when you were in
·9· ·Hong Kong prior to leaving for film school in 2007?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
11· · · · A.· ·Hotel.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·And when you came -- and then from 2007
14· ·through 2012, you lived in New York?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes.
16· · · · Q.· ·And when you left New York, where did you
17· ·go?
18· · · · A.· ·I traveled for a while and then went back
19· ·to Beijing.
20· · · · Q.· ·How long did you travel?
21· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.
22· · · · Q.· ·How long -- when did you start living in
23· ·Beijing again?
24· · · · A.· ·I was in Beijing the whole time from 2014
25· ·to 2017.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 44

·2· · · · Q.· ·So from 2014 to 2017 you never lived in
·3· ·Hong Kong?
·4· · · · A.· ·I never did.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　Before 2014, did you ever live in
·6· ·Hong Kong other than in the hotel?
·7· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Where did you live?
·9· · · · A.· ·At my friend's.
10· · · · Q.· ·What friend was that?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
12· · · · A.· ·Friends in Hong Kong.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·When you lived in -- when you came in
15· ·2017, where did you live?
16· · · · A.· ·Hotel.
17· · · · Q.· ·When you came to New York in 2017, you
18· ·moved into a hotel?
19· · · · A.· ·Yes.
20· · · · Q.· ·Was it the Sherry-Netherland hotel?
21· · · · A.· ·No.·　I only stayed there for a couple of
22· ·days.
23· · · · Q.· ·Do you reside in the Sherry-Netherland
24· ·hotel now?
25· · · · A.· ·No.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever resided in the
·3· ·Sherry-Netherland hotel?
·4· · · · A.· ·Several years ago, yes.
·5· · · · Q.· ·When was that?
·6· · · · A.· ·Just when I first came here in 2017.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Does your brother reside at the
·8· ·Sherry-Netherland hotel?
·9· · · · A.· ·He's resided there several times.
10· · · · Q.· ·When did he live there?
11· · · · A.· ·He did in 2017 and 2018.·
That's probably
12· ·it.·　I can't really remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·Did your father reside at the
14· ·Sherry-Netherland hotel?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes, sometimes.
16· · · · Q.· ·Does he reside there now?
17· · · · A.· ·You mean today?
18· · · · Q.· ·Yes.
19· · · · A.· ·I really don't know.
20· · · · Q.· ·How about within the past six months?
21· · · · A.· ·I think probably occasionally, but I don't
22· ·really know.
23· · · · Q.· ·Where does your father reside when he's
24· ·not residing in the Sherry-Netherland hotel?
25· · · · A.· ·Connecticut.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 46

·2· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
What countries do you hold
·3· ·citizenship in?
·4· · · · A.· ·I have a Hong Kong passport.
·5· · · · Q.· ·How do you have a Hong Kong passport if
·6· ·you've never lived in Hong Kong as a resident?
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·8· · · · A.· ·Because my parents are Hong Kong
·9· ·residents.·
So automatically, the children would get
10· ·a Hong Kong passport.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·What address in Hong Kong is associated
13· ·with your passport?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
16· ·BY MR. LUFT:
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you hold Chinese citizenship?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
19· · · · A.· ·Not at the moment.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever resided at 20 South Bay Road
22· ·in Hong Kong?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
24· · · · A.· ·No.
Page 47 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Do you hold a Chinese passport? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, asked and ·5· · · · answered. ·6· · · · A.· ·No. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·The money you make as CEO of Pangu Plaza, ·9· ·how is that transferred to you? 10· · · · A.· ·That would be paid into my main salary 11· ·card. 12· · · · Q.· ·What is a salary card? 13· · · · A.· ·So in China, for everyone working, they 14· ·will have a card where the company would directly 15· ·make payments into.· It's appropriately similar to 16· ·direct deposit or something here. 17· · · · · · ·It is my personal card.· We all have one. 18· · · · Q.· ·Since you came to this country in 2017, 19· ·how has your Pangu Plaza salary been paid to you? 20· · · · A.· ·The same salary card. 21· · · · Q.· ·Do you have access to the money in that 22· ·salary card in the United States? 23· · · · A.· ·Yes.· The Bank of China has a branch here. 24· · · · Q.· ·And you have an account at the 25· ·Bank of China?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 48
·2· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Does your father have an account at the
·4· ·Bank of China?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to form.
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Does your brother have an account at the
·9· ·Bank of China?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
11· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·I asked about 20 South Bay Road.
14· · · · · · ·Have you ever resided at 22 South Bay Road
15· ·in Hong Kong?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
17· · · · A.· ·No.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Prior to your father -- when did your
20· ·father leave China?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Meaning for good?
22· · · · A.· ·He departed from Beijing in 2014, but
23· ·specifically, when did he depart from Hong Kong, I
24· ·can't remember.
·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 49

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Before he left Beijing, what did your
·4· ·father do to earn money?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Your father has described himself as a
·9· ·billionaire prior to leaving China.
10· · · · · · ·What did he do to earn a billion dollars
11· ·prior to leaving China?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
13· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·Is anyone in your family a billionaire?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Is anyone in your family a millionaire?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
21· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
22· ·BY MR. LUFT:
23· · · · Q.· ·Are you a millionaire?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
25· · · · A.· ·I'm not at the moment.

Page 50 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Is your brother a millionaire? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· What does your brother do for work? ·8· · · · A.· ·My brother is an investor in many areas, ·9· ·many aspects, and he also helps with family 10· ·business. 11· · · · Q.· ·What is the source of funds your brother 12· ·uses to invest? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 14· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·What companies does your brother invest 17· ·in? 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 19· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 20· ·BY MR. LUFT: 21· · · · Q.· ·Which family members' money does your 22· ·brother invest? 23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 24· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 25

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 51

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Where does your brother live?
·4· · · · A.· ·London.
·5· · · · Q.· ·What address?
·6· · · · A.· ·I really can't remember.
·7· · · · Q.· ·What companies does your brother control?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to the word
·9· · · · "control."
10· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Do you know any companies that your
13· ·brother owns?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·Did your brother go to a university?
16· · · · A.· ·Yes.
17· · · · Q.· ·Where did he go?
18· · · · A.· ·I can't remember the name.·
A university
19· ·in the UK that's the top ranking in the economics
20· ·major.
21· · · · Q.· ·Do you know when he graduated?
22· · · · A.· ·I know that in recent years he also
23· ·studied in a master's course, but I'm not sure about
24· ·the exact year.
25· · · · Q.· ·Do you have any other family in the

Page 52 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·United States? ·3· · · · A.· ·My parents. ·4· · · · Q.· ·Any other family in the UK other than your ·5· ·brother? ·6· · · · A.· ·No. ·7· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time you saw your ·8· ·brother? ·9· · · · A.· ·Two years ago.· It's been two or 10· ·three years, approximately.· I don't remember. 11· · · · Q.· ·Since you've been in the United States 12· ·starting in 2017, how often has your brother come 13· ·from the UK to visit? 14· · · · A.· ·Maybe just once per year, or at a maximum 15· ·twice a year. 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Mr. Luft, we're coming up 17· · · · about on an hour and a half, so whenever may be 18· · · · a convenient break for the witness, I'd 19· · · · appreciate it. 20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Okay. 21· ·BY MR. LUFT: 22· · · · Q.· ·But in the past couple of years, he hasn't 23· ·made those trips? 24· · · · A.· ·That's correct. 25· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall the last time he came to

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 53

·2· ·visit in the United States?
·3· · · · A.· ·It's approximately two or three years ago.
·4· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
We can take a break now.

·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Okay.·
Thank you.
·6· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
Excuse me.
·7· · · · · · ·The time is 12:01 p.m.·
We're going off
·8· · · · the record.
·9· · · · · · ·(Recess.)
10· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It is 12:24 p.m.·
We
11· · · · are back on the record.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, a quick follow-up question from
14· ·what we were discussing before.·
You said you worked
15· ·with a manager of the Pangu Plaza.
16· · · · · · ·What is their name?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
18· · · · A.· ·So there's not just one manager, but
19· ·department managers.·
There are six or seven of
20· ·them.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·What are their names?
23· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.·
I don't call them by
24· ·their names.
25· · · · Q.· ·What do you call them by?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 54

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·3· · · · A.· ·I just say "Hi everyone."
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·And since people have been locked out of
·6· ·the building for the past year, have you -- during
·7· ·that time, has Pangu Plaza generated any funds?
·8· · · · A.· ·No.·
The money is also locked inside.
·9· · · · Q.· ·You mentioned that you have a personal
10· ·bank account at the Bank of China in New York; is
11· ·that correct?
12· · · · A.· ·So this account was opened in China, but I
13· ·can also use it in New York.
14· · · · Q.· ·Other than the Bank of China, is there any
15· ·other banks where you hold personal bank accounts?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·Very recently, I've already had five to
18· ·six bank accounts locked in the US.
19· ·BY MR. LUFT:
20· · · · Q.· ·What do you mean when you say you have had
21· ·five or six bank accounts locked in the US?
22· · · · A.· ·It's that whenever I open an account with
23· ·any bank and use it for a little while, it gets
24· ·locked.
25· · · · · · ·And the most recent one was locked last

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 55

·2· ·week, and I haven't had the opportunity to get
·3· ·another one.
·4· · · · Q.· ·What bank was that with?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·Chase, Bank of America, Citibank,
·7· ·First Republic -- oh, no, I can't remember -- yes,
·8· ·First Republic.
·9· · · · · · ·And these are the ones that I can remember
10· ·for now.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Did any of those banks give you an
13· ·explanation for why your bank account was locked?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· · · · A.· ·Entire, not.
16· ·BY MR. LUFT:
17· · · · Q.· ·And I'm told -- is the proper translation
18· ·"closed," not "locked"?
19· · · · A.· ·Right.·
So they canceled my account number
20· ·and told me that they will never have a business
21· ·relationship with me.
22· · · · Q.· ·Other than telling you that they would
23· ·never have a business relationship with you, did any
24· ·of those banks give you any further explanation for
25· ·why they would not have a business relationship with

Page 56 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·you? ·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·4· · · · A.· ·No.· I've asked, and they just told me ·5· ·it's not up to them. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·You're the legal owner -- let me strike ·8· ·that. ·9· · · · · · ·You're familiar with an entity called 10· ·Hong Kong International USA? 11· · · · A.· ·Yes. 12· · · · Q.· ·And you allege that you are the owner of 13· ·that entity, correct? 14· · · · A.· ·Yes. 15· · · · Q.· ·And Hong Kong International USA has no 16· ·bank accounts, correct? 17· · · · A.· ·Correct. 18· · · · Q.· ·Other than Hong Kong International USA, is 19· ·there any other entity that you allege that you own? 20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 21· · · · A.· ·Yes. 22· ·BY MR. LUFT: 23· · · · Q.· ·What is the name of that entity? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 25· · · · A.· ·I can't remember now.

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 58 of 211

Page 57 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Can you -- is it more than one entity? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·5· · · · A.· ·Yes, probably. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· What do you recall about the ·8· ·entities that you own? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 10· · · · A.· ·I really can't remember now. 11· ·BY MR. LUFT: 12· · · · Q.· ·Are you the legal owner of that entity? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 14· · · · · · ·I think I'd just ask for clarification 15· · · · what entity you're referring to? 16· · · · A.· ·My question is which entity. 17· ·BY MR. LUFT: 18· · · · Q.· ·I asked you if -- other than Hong Kong 19· ·International USA, if there's any other entity that 20· ·you own.· You told me that there was but you don't 21· ·remember the name. 22· · · · · · ·So I'm asking you about that entity that 23· ·you state that you own that is not Hong Kong 24· ·International USA. 25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· She said there were multiple

Page 58 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · entities. ·3· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· No, she didn't.· She said she ·4· · · · doesn't recall.· Maybe. ·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I think the question is ·6· · · · confusing. ·7· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Okay.· Honestly, if you'd like ·8· · · · to be deposed next, let me know and I'll -- but ·9· · · · right now I'm just going to talk to Ms. Guo, 10· · · · okay? 11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I'm happy -- I'm happy to be 12· · · · deposed. 13· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I'm sure you are. 14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I'm happy to be deposed. 15· · · · He's welcome to depose me right now. 16· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· You've been testifying all day. 17· · · · I'm sure you do. 18· ·BY MR. LUFT: 19· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I'm asking you about whatever 20· ·entity that you were referring to.· So let's just 21· ·clarify this. 22· · · · · · ·Other than Hong Kong USA, is there more 23· ·than one entity that you are the owner of? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 25· · · · A.· ·So you mean that you are asking me how

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 59

·2· ·many?
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·Let's start with that.·
How many entities
·5· ·other than Hong Kong USA do you allege that you own?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·7· · · · A.· ·I really didn't know previously but
·8· ·recently I've overheard your colleague, Luc,
·9· ·threatening my dad, saying that I have nine
10· ·companies.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Where did you overhear Mr. Despins?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
14· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
The name?
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
D-E-S-P-I-N-S.
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
And I would just say that
17· · · · it --
18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Counsel, please stop
19· · · · interfering.
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I need to interpose an
21· · · · objection.
22· · · · · · ·If you learned from counsel about these
23· · · · conversations, then I'd ask you not to speak
24· · · · about conversations with counsel.
25· · · · A.· ·I don't remember exactly when.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 60

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever attended any hearings?
·4· · · · A.· ·No.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever been in a room with
·6· ·Mr. Despins?
·7· · · · A.· ·No.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever been on a phone call with
·9· ·Mr. Despins?
10· · · · A.· ·No.
11· · · · Q.· ·In fact, you've never heard Mr. Despins
12· ·say anything to your father, correct?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
14· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·Are you -- putting aside what anyone may
17· ·have told you about what Mr. Despins may or may not
18· ·have said, to your knowledge, how many entities do
19· ·you believe that you own other than Hong Kong
20· ·International USA?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
22· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·Do you control those entities?
25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 61

·2· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·What are their names?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·I can't remember now.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·What businesses are they in?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
10· · · · A.· ·As far as I know, there's no business
11· ·currently.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Where are they located?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· · · · A.· ·Are you referring to the location of the
16· ·company?
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·Uh-huh.
19· · · · A.· ·At this moment, these companies don't have
20· ·a physical address.
21· · · · Q.· ·Do any of these companies have employees?
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
23· · · · A.· ·No.
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·Do any of these entities have assets?

Page 62 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·3· · · · A.· ·My yacht. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Other than Hong Kong International USA, do ·6· ·any of the entities that you purport to own have any ·7· ·assets? ·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·9· · · · A.· ·Just my yacht. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Is that an asset that is held by any 12· ·entity other than Hong Kong International USA? 13· · · · A.· ·You're referring to the yacht, my yacht? 14· · · · Q.· ·I'm asking other than Hong Kong 15· ·International USA, do any of the other entities you 16· ·own and control have an interest in the Lady May? 17· · · · A.· ·No. 18· · · · Q.· ·So is it fair to say that -- strike that. 19· · · · · · ·Did you establish these other entities 20· ·that you own and control -- 21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection to form. 22· ·BY MR. LUFT: 23· · · · Q.· ·-- other than Hong Kong International USA? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 25· · · · A.· ·They were not established by me.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Who were they established by?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·How did you acquire those entities?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·9· · · · A.· ·They were transferred to me.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Who transferred those entities to you?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
13· · · · A.· ·People managing the family fund.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·Which people?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
17· · · · A.· ·I can't remember the exact.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Can you remember anyone who transferred
20· ·you one of these companies that you now own?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
22· · · · A.· ·Yes.·　HKI.·
This company was transferred
23· ·to me by Ms. Qu.
24· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Spelled as Q-U.
Page 64 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Other than Hong Kong International, can ·4· ·you tell me anyone who transferred one of the ·5· ·entities you purport to own? ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·7· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. ·8· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·9· · · · Q.· ·Why did they -- other than Hong Kong 10· ·International, why were any of these entities that 11· ·you purport to own transferred to you? 12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 13· · · · A.· ·So I can help managing the company. 14· ·BY MR. LUFT: 15· · · · Q.· ·Do any of those companies have operations? 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 17· · · · A.· ·At the moment, no. 18· ·BY MR. LUFT: 19· · · · Q.· ·Did they ever have operations from the 20· ·time she's held them? 21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 22· · · · A.· ·Not yet. 23· ·BY MR. LUFT: 24· · · · Q.· ·So if they have no operations, what do you 25· ·do to manage them?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 65

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·3· · · · A.· ·Nothing.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·Just to be clear, do any of those entities
·6· ·have -- well, you told me Hong Kong International
·7· ·doesn't have a bank account.
·8· · · · · · ·Do any of these other entities that you
·9· ·purport to own have bank accounts?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
11· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if any of them have any
14· ·assets?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
16· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Who made the decision that other
19· ·than Hong Kong International, those entities that
20· ·you purport to own should be transferred to you?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
22· · · · A.· ·People from the family fund.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·Which people?
25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.

Page 66 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · A.· ·At that time, it was a decision reached by ·3· ·negotiation with everybody. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Specifically, which people made the ·6· ·decision to send -- to transfer these companies that ·7· ·did not have assets and operations to your ·8· ·ownership? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 10· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:· Can the interpreter 11· · · · clarify single or plural from the witness? 12· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Sure. 13· · · · A.· ·My uncles and also myself. 14· ·BY MR. LUFT: 15· · · · Q.· ·Which uncles? 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 17· · · · A.· ·At the time, it was the fifth and the 18· ·sixth older brothers of my dad. 19· ·BY MR. LUFT: 20· · · · Q.· ·And these are the same uncles whose names 21· ·you don't know? 22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 23· · · · A.· ·Right. 24· ·BY MR. LUFT: 25· · · · Q.· ·Why did they establish these companies?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·You said you had a discussion with them.
·6· · · · · · ·What was the reason for why those
·7· ·companies were transferred to your ownership?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, asked and
·9· · · · answered.
10· · · · A.· ·The specific reason is in 2017, I came
11· ·back to the US.·
So compared with them, I have a
12· ·better personal security.·
So the decision was to
13· ·first transfer them to me.
14· · · · · · ·And also, because I was managing
15· ·Pangu Plaza at that time, and that's my
16· ·responsibility as part of the family fund.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·Do you know in what country these
19· ·companies are incorporated?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
21· · · · A.· ·Hong Kong probably.
22· ·BY MR. LUFT:
23· · · · Q.· ·Do you own any cars?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
25· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Sorry.·
I didn't

Page 68 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · understand. ·3· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you own any cars? ·5· · · · A.· ·No.· I don't know how to drive. ·6· · · · Q.· ·Do any of the entities that you control ·7· ·have any cars listed in their names? ·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·9· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Does the family fund control any cars that 12· ·are located in the United States? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 14· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·Do any of the companies that you control 17· ·have as an asset an airplane? 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 19· · · · A.· ·It has happened. 20· ·BY MR. LUFT: 21· · · · Q.· ·Which companies that you control had an 22· ·airplane as an asset? 23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 24· · · · A.· ·I don't remember the name. 25

Page 69 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·When did they hold the plane as an asset? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·5· · · · A.· ·I think it was probably in 2017 or 2018. ·6· ·I don't remember the exact date. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·What happened to that plane? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 10· · · · A.· ·We didn't really use it much, and it's 11· ·hard to manage.· So we put it into the market for 12· ·many years.· Eventually it sold. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·When was the plane sold? 15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 16· · · · A.· ·It was summer last year, and it had been 17· ·in the market for many years. 18· ·BY MR. LUFT: 19· · · · Q.· ·So this past summer? 20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 21· · · · A.· ·Yes. 22· ·BY MR. LUFT: 23· · · · Q.· ·When you say "we sold it," who is the 24· ·"we"? 25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form.

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Page 70 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · A.· ·So that would be a word introduced by the ·3· ·interpreter.· I didn't specifically say "we."· The ·4· ·interpreter said "we." ·5· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·6· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· So who made the decision to sell ·7· ·the plane in the summer of 2022? ·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·9· · · · A.· ·Me. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·And when in the summer of 2022 did you 12· ·sell the plane? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·Who did you sell the plane to? 17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 18· · · · A.· ·I can't remember the party's name that I 19· ·sold it to. 20· ·BY MR. LUFT: 21· · · · Q.· ·How much did you sell the plane for? 22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 23· · · · A.· ·I think it's over 10 million. 24· ·BY MR. LUFT: 25· · · · Q.· ·And what happened to those funds?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·3· · · · A.· ·My brother helped me to take care of the
·4· ·funds.·
I don't know about the specifics.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·How did your brother help you take care of
·7· ·the funds?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·9· · · · A.· ·How he took care of it?·
I'm not sure if I
10· ·understand what that means.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Well, you said that your brother helped
13· ·you take care of the funds.·
So I want to
14· ·understand; what did he do?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
16· · · · A.· ·He helped me to negotiate on the price and
17· ·then sold it.·
That's it.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·And once you sold it, where did those
20· ·\$10 million in funds go?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
22· · · · A.· ·Now it's at somewhere with a third party.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·Which third party holds the \$10 million
25· ·from the sale of the airplane?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 72

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·You don't know where \$10 million is that
·6· ·you received for the sale of a plane that a company
·7· ·you own controlled?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, asked and
·9· · · · answered.
10· · · · A.· ·I've just mentioned at a third party.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·What third party?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
14· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·If you wanted to get that \$10 million, how
17· ·would you find it, given that you don't know the
18· ·name of the third party who's holding it?
19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
20· · · · A.· ·I'll ask my brother.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·So you have no knowledge who has that
23· ·\$10 million right now?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Asked and answered.
25· · · · A.· ·I just don't remember the name of them.

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Page 73 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Is it a person or a corporation? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·Who's the owner of that \$10 million? ·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·9· · · · A.· ·Me. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Is it possible that that \$10 million -- 12· ·strike that. 13· · · · · · ·Where was the sale done? 14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 15· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 16· ·BY MR. LUFT: 17· · · · Q.· ·What type of plane was it? 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 19· · · · A.· ·So the exact model, I think it might have 20· ·been 747.· It's pretty big. 21· ·BY MR. LUFT: 22· · · · Q.· ·Is it a plane you had traveled on with 23· ·your family? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection to form. 25· · · · A.· ·Yes.· When I was a kid back in China, I

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 74

·2· ·traveled with my family on it.
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·How old were you then?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·I was a teenager.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·So how old is this plane?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
10· · · · A.· ·I think it's probably 15 years.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·And you don't recall which of your
13· ·entities held that plane --
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·-- prior to the sale this summer?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
18· · · · A.· ·I can't remember the full name.·
I think
19· ·it's probably Whitcraft.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time you flew on the
22· ·plane?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
24· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
Page 75 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time your father flew on ·4· ·the plane? ·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·6· · · · A.· ·I don't remember either. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Does Hong Kong International USA ·9· ·file tax returns? 10· · · · A.· ·Yes. 11· · · · Q.· ·Where does it file tax returns? 12· · · · A.· ·In New York.· I'm not sure. 13· · · · Q.· ·Do you have copies of those tax returns? 14· · · · A.· ·Not at the moment. 15· · · · Q.· ·Who holds copies of those tax returns? 16· · · · A.· ·The person who does tax for me. 17· · · · Q.· ·And when you were in Hong Kong, did you 18· ·file -- Hong Kong International, did it file tax 19· ·returns? 20· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 21· · · · Q.· ·Do you know why Mr. Vartan would have 22· ·written to O'Melveny & Myers and told them that 23· ·Hong Kong International does not file tax returns? 24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 25· · · · A.· ·I'm actually a bit confused now.

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Page 76 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·Now we're talking about Hong Kong ·3· ·International, right? ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·No.· Hong Kong International USA. ·6· · · · · · ·Do you know why Mr. Vartan would have told ·7· ·O'Melveny & Myers in 2021 that Hong Kong ·8· ·International USA does not file tax returns? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. 10· · · · A.· ·That's because this company now doesn't 11· ·make any profits. 12· · · · · · ·I think I probably made a mistake myself 13· ·earlier because I don't really remember details 14· ·about the tax. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·When you said you made a mistake, what do 17· ·you mean?· Does Hong Kong International USA file tax 18· ·returns or not? 19· · · · A.· ·I'm not -- I'm really not sure. 20· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· You allege that the Lady May was 21· ·given to you as a gift, correct? 22· · · · A.· ·Yes. 23· · · · Q.· ·Did you declare it as a gift for taxes in 24· ·any country? 25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · · · ·Again, if this is calling for advice of
·3· · · · counsel or conversations with counsel, you
·4· · · · can't disclose that.
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·You don't know if you declared -- let me
·8· ·just be very clear.
·9· · · · · · ·Have you ever declared the Lady May as a
10· ·gift for purposes of taxes filed in the
11· ·United States by yourself or Hong Kong
12· ·International?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
Same admonition,
14· · · · that if this implicates --
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
This is a yes-or-no question,
16· · · · Counsel.·
These are completely improper.
17· · · · · · ·Counsel, there's no privilege issue to
18· · · · asking yes or no, did she declare it on her
19· · · · taxes.·
Right?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
If she was directed by her
21· · · · attorneys to do one thing --
22· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No.·
I'm not asking what advice
23· · · · she got.·
I'm asking yes or no, did something
24· · · · happen.
25· · · · · · ·Counsel, this is improper.

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Page 78 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I'm allowed to interpose my ·3· · · · objection. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Go ahead, Ms. Guo.· Please answer the ·6· ·question. ·7· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. ·8· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever declare the Lady May as gift ·9· ·for purposes of filing taxes in Hong Kong? 10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Same objection. 11· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 12· ·BY MR. LUFT: 13· · · · Q.· ·Is there any country that you know of for 14· ·which you declared the Lady May as a gift for 15· ·purposes of filing taxes? 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Same objection. 17· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 18· ·BY MR. LUFT: 19· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Are you familiar with a woman named 20· ·Yvette Wang? 21· · · · A.· ·Yes.· I know her. 22· · · · Q.· ·Who is Ms. Wang? 23· · · · A.· ·She's my friend and she's also worked at 24· ·my brother's company. 25· · · · Q.· ·What company is that?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 79

·2· · · · · · ·(A discussion was held off the record.)
·3· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
The interpreter stands
·4· · · · corrected.·　The witness said "She worked for my
·5· · · · brother."
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·What does Ms. Wang do for your brother?
·8· · · · A.· ·She works at my brother's family fund
·9· ·office.
10· · · · Q.· ·And what is the name of your brother's
11· ·family fund office?
12· · · · A.· ·Golden Spring, New York.
13· · · · Q.· ·Does she still work there?
14· · · · A.· ·No.
15· · · · Q.· ·Where does she work now?
16· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
17· · · · Q.· ·When did she stop working there?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't know the exact time.
19· · · · Q.· ·What's your best estimate?
20· · · · A.· ·Last year.
21· · · · Q.· ·Before or after your father declared
22· ·bankruptcy?
23· · · · A.· ·After, I think.
24· · · · Q.· ·How long after your father declared
25· ·bankruptcy did Ms. Wang leave her employment at

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 80

·2· ·Golden Spring?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you know Ms. Wang's phone number?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you know where Ms. Wang lives?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
10· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·If you had to send her a letter, what
13· ·address would you send it to?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
15· · · · A.· ·I don't write letters to her.
16· ·BY MR. LUFT:
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you have her email address?
18· · · · A.· ·No.
19· · · · Q.· ·Who else works at Golden Spring other than
20· ·Ms. Wang?
21· · · · A.· ·A lot of people.·
I don't know their
22· ·names.
23· · · · Q.· ·Do you know anyone's name other than
24· ·Ms. Wang who has worked at Golden Spring?
25· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 81

·2· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time you saw Ms. Wang?
·3· · · · A.· ·Last month.
·4· · · · · · ·It's January now, right?·
It's been one or
·5· ·two months.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Where did you see Ms. Wang?
·7· · · · A.· ·In Connecticut.
·8· · · · Q.· ·At your parents' home?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·Do you believe Ms. Wang to be honest?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
12· · · · A.· ·Yes.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·To be truthful?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
16· · · · · · ·I really don't understand, you know, these
17· · · · questions.
18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan --
19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
At this point they're so far
20· · · · afield -- I mean, we've been far afield all
21· · · · day, but these in particular are completely out
22· · · · of bounds.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·You can answer.
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

Page 82 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · Q.· ·If Ms. Wang said that an entity she worked ·3· ·for was actually controlled by Mr. Kwok, would you ·4· ·have any reason to believe that she was not telling ·5· ·the truth? ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, form. ·7· · · · A.· ·When did she say that and where did she ·8· ·say that? ·9· ·BY MR. LUFT: 10· · · · Q.· ·I'm just asking you, if she was to make a 11· ·statement that an entity she worked for was actually 12· ·controlled by your father, would you have any reason 13· ·to believe she wasn't telling the truth? 14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection.· If you have a 15· · · · copy of the statement that you want to share 16· · · · with the witness, by all means.· But these are, 17· · · · you know, unfair questions.· You're asking 18· · · · hypotheticals topped on hypotheticals. 19· ·BY MR. LUFT: 20· · · · Q.· ·You can answer. 21· · · · A.· ·I would like to see that document. 22· · · · Q.· ·I'm just asking you a question. 23· · · · · · ·If that's what she said, would you have 24· ·any reason to believe she wasn't telling the truth? 25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection.· She's answered

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 83

·2· · · · your question.
·3· · · · A.· ·I haven't seen this thing and I don't know
·4· ·whether she actually said that.·
I can't really say
·5· ·whether she was not telling the truth.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Do you know a person named Max Krasner?
·8· · · · A.· ·Yes, I know.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Who is Mr. Krasner?
10· · · · A.· ·A person that works at my brother's
11· ·company, Golden Spring.
12· · · · Q.· ·Sorry.·　Let me step back one second.
13· · · · · · ·Has Ms. Wang ever worked for you or one of
14· ·your companies?
15· · · · A.· ·No.
16· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever authorized Ms. Wang to take
17· ·actions on behalf of you or one of your companies?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
19· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·What did Mr. Krasner do at Golden Spring?
22· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure about the specifics.
23· ·Probably management.
24· · · · Q.· ·Does Mr. Krasner still work at
25· ·Golden Spring?

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·2· · · · A.· ·No.

·3· · · · Q.· ·When did Mr. Krasner stop working at
·4· ·Golden Spring?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·6· · · · Q.· ·What's your best recollection?
·7· · · · A.· ·Also last year.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Before or after your father declared
·9· ·bankruptcy?
10· · · · A.· ·After.
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you know where Mr. Krasner works now?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
13· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time you spoke to
14· ·Mr. Krasner?
15· · · · A.· ·Last year.
16· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever speak to Mr. Krasner about
17· ·Hong Kong International?

YVer1f

18· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

19· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever speak to Ms. Wang about

20· ·Hong Kong International?

21· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.

22· · · · Q.· ·Do you know someone named Fiona Yu? 23· · · · A.· ·It sounds very familiar, but I don't 24· ·remember.

25· · · · Q.· ·How about Daniel Podhaskie?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · A.· ·I think this person was probably also an
·3· ·employee of Golden Spring.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever have any business dealings
·5· ·with Mr. Podhaskie?
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever have -- did you ever speak to
·8· ·Mr. Podhaskie regarding Hong Kong International?
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
10· · · · Q.· ·Does Mr. Podhaskie work at Golden Spring
11· ·currently?
12· · · · A.· ·No.
13· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever have any business dealings
14· ·with Ms. Wang?
15· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
16· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time you spoke to
17· ·Mr. Podhaskie?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
19· · · · Q.· ·Who is Aaron Mitchell?
20· · · · A.· ·My counsel.
21· · · · Q.· ·When did Mr. Mitchell start serving as
22· ·your counsel?
23· · · · A.· ·It's been many years.
24· · · · Q.· ·When did he first start becoming your
25· ·counsel?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Why did you hire Mr. Mitchell?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·5· · · · A.· ·Because I need Mr. Mitchell.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that Mr. Mitchell is also
·8· ·your father's lawyer?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·Is Mr. Mitchell currently your counsel?
11· · · · A.· ·Yes.
12· · · · Q.· ·Was Mr. Mitchell your counsel during the
13· ·time of the PAX litigation between PAX and your
14· ·father?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you know Melissa Francis?
17· · · · A.· ·No.
18· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever had any dealings with
19· ·Melissa Francis through Golden Spring?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to form.
21· · · · · · ·She just said she doesn't know
22· · · · Melissa Francis.
23· · · · A.· ·No.
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·If I told you that Ms. Francis was the

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Page 87 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·general counsel at Golden Spring, would that refresh ·3· ·your recollection? ·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. ·5· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. ·6· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·7· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· We are going to mark as Mei Guo ·8· ·Deposition Exhibit 1 what I believe you will tell me ·9· ·is a copy of the affidavit you submitted to the 10· ·State Supreme Court of the State of New York in 11· ·connection with the Pacific Alliance Asia 12· ·Opportunity Fund v. Ho Wan Kwok, Genever Holdings, 13· ·and Genever Holdings Corporation litigation. 14· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 1 was received and marked 15· · · · for identification, as of this date.) 16· · · · A.· ·(Witness reviews document.) 17· ·BY MR. LUFT: 18· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, do you recognize this document? 19· · · · A.· ·Yes. 20· · · · Q.· ·If we turn to page 5 of 6, is that your 21· ·signature? 22· · · · A.· ·Yes. 23· · · · Q.· ·And is everything you put in this 24· ·affidavit that was submitted to the Court in the 25· ·Supreme Court, State of New York, truthful and

Page 88 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·accurate? ·3· · · · A.· ·Yes. ·4· · · · Q.· ·Is there anything in this affidavit that ·5· ·you would want to change, sitting here today? ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· If you need to read it in ·7· · · · full, obviously, you have that ability. ·8· · · · A.· ·Let me take a look. ·9· · · · · · ·(Witness reviews document.) 10· · · · · · ·I'm done. 11· ·BY MR. LUFT: 12· · · · Q.· ·Having now reread your entire affidavit, 13· ·is there anything in it that you believe is 14· ·inaccurate? 15· · · · A.· ·No. 16· · · · Q.· ·Is there anything in it that you wish to 17· ·change? 18· · · · A.· ·No. 19· · · · Q.· ·If you're called as a witness at the 20· ·hearing in connection with this litigation, would 21· ·you give the same testimony as you have set forth in 22· ·this affidavit? 23· · · · A.· ·Yes, I would. 24· · · · Q.· ·Other than what is set forth in this 25· ·affidavit, if you were called as a witness in this

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· ·hearing, is there anything else, sitting here today,
·3· ·that you intend to testify to at the hearing before
·4· ·Judge Manning at the bankruptcy court?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
How could she
·6· · · · possibly answer that?
·7· · · · A.· ·I don't quite understand the question.
·8· · · · · · ·Does it mean that if I would be saying the
·9· ·same things I'm saying here today at the court?
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Maybe I'll ask it a different way.
12· · · · · · ·In writing this declaration that you
13· ·submitted to the Supreme Court of the State of
14· ·New York, did you intend to include all pertinent
15· ·facts that you thought the Court should know with
16· ·regard to HK International USA and your assertion of
17· ·ownership with regard to the Lady May?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, form.
19· · · · A.· ·Yes.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Sitting here today, are there any other
22· ·facts that you are aware of that you think the
23· ·bankruptcy court should know with regard to
24· ·HK International USA and your assertion that
25· ·HK International USA is the owner of Lady May?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 90

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
How could she
·3· · · · possibly answer that?
·4· · · · · · ·If you have a specific question --
·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, stop.
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I mean, that's not a
·7· · · · permissible question.
·8· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
It is a completely permissible
·9· · · · question.·
I'm tired of you wasting time.
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm not wasting any time.
11· · · · That is an impossible question to answer.
12· · · · You're asking her to set forth from the
13· · · · beginning of time --
14· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan?·
No.·
I said
15· · · · "sitting here today."
16· · · · · · ·Please listen to my question.·
Stop
17· · · · interrupting.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, please answer my question.
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I don't see how she can
21· · · · possibly answer that question.·
I don't know
22· · · · how anyone could.·
But if you can --
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, do we have to go to
24· · · · the Court?·
I'm tired of, before every time I
25· · · · ask a question, you telling the witness "That's

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 91

·2· · · · not one you could possibly answer."
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I don't know how anyone -- I
·4· · · · couldn't even answer that question.
·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Well, guess what?·
You don't
·6· · · · know any of the facts, so that doesn't surprise
·7· · · · me.·
You're not getting deposed today.·
She's
·8· · · · the fact witness.
·9· · · · · · ·Please let her answer the question without
10· · · · your interference.
11· · · · A.· ·I'm not quite sure what this question is.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Your counsel has listed you as a witness
14· ·for the upcoming PJR hearing.
15· · · · · · ·Are you aware of that?
16· · · · A.· ·Yes.
17· · · · Q.· ·Is it your intention to offer testimony on
18· ·behalf of the lawsuit you have brought and against
19· ·the counterclaims brought by the trustee at the PJR
20· ·hearing?
21· · · · A.· ·Yes.
22· · · · Q.· ·Other than the facts that you have set
23· ·forth in what has been marked as Mei Guo Deposition
24· ·Exhibit 1, which is your affidavit, are there any
25· ·other facts that you intend to offer in affirmative

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 92

·2· ·testimony to the bankruptcy court in connection with
·3· ·the PJR hearing?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to the form of that
·5· · · · question.
·6· · · · A.· ·At the moment, no.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·I'm marking as Mei Guo deposition
·9· ·Exhibit 2 what I believe you will tell me is a copy
10· ·of the hearing transcript from February 2nd, 2022,
11· ·before Justice Ostrager in the PAX v. Genever
12· ·Holdings litigation.
13· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 2 was received and marked
14· · · · for identification, as of this date.)
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you attended this hearing,
17· ·correct?
18· · · · A.· ·Yes.
19· · · · Q.· ·Were you there for the entirety of the
20· ·hearing?
21· · · · A.· ·Not the entire hearing.·
Just when I was
22· ·needed.
23· · · · Q.· ·And Mr. Vartan represented you at that
24· ·hearing?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 93

·2· · · · Q.· ·And you're aware that Mr. Vartan appeared
·3· ·on behalf of Hong Kong International; is that
·4· ·correct?
·5· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·6· · · · Q.· ·And Mr. Vartan presented you as a witness
·7· ·at the hearing?
·8· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·9· · · · Q.· ·And Mr. Vartan presented other witnesses
10· ·on behalf of Hong Kong International at the hearing,
11· ·correct?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't quite remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall Mr. Vartan also appeared on
14· ·your behalf at the hearing?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall someone named
17· ·Russell Stockil?
18· · · · A.· ·Yes.
19· · · · Q.· ·Who is Mr. Stockil?
20· · · · A.· ·The person responsible at the management
21· ·company of my yacht.
22· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall that Mr. Vartan presented
23· ·Mr. Stockil as a witness at the hearing?
24· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
25· · · · Q.· ·I'll ask you to turn to page 76 of the

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 94

·2· ·hearing transcript.·
Specifically, I'm going to
·3· ·direct you to lines 9 through 12.
·4· · · · · · ·Do you see the question is to Mr. Stockil:
·5· · · · · · · · · "The representatives that you refer
·6· · · · · · ·to in paragraph 3, namely the
·7· · · · · · ·representatives of HK USA who contacted
·8· · · · · · ·you, none of them was Ms. Mei Guo,
·9· · · · · · ·correct?"
10· · · · · · · · · "Yes, that's correct."
11· · · · · · ·Do you see that testimony?
12· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
13· · · · Q.· ·Any reason to believe that Mr. Stockil's
14· ·testimony was not truthful and accurate?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
16· · · · A.· ·No.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·Do you know what representative of HK USA
19· ·contacted Mr. Stockil on behalf of HK USA?
20· · · · A.· ·I think there was a Max.·
Whether there
21· ·were also others, I don't know.
22· · · · Q.· ·Max Krasner is who you're referring to?
23· · · · A.· ·Yes.
24· · · · Q.· ·So Max Krasner was the person who
25· ·contacted Mr. Stockil with regard to the Lady May?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 95

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to form.
·3· · · · · · ·Are you asking about the testimony or
·4· · · · generally?
·5· · · · A.· ·Here what is written is representative.
·6· ·So I think there were probably several people, but I
·7· ·don't quite remember exactly who.
·8· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·9· · · · Q.· ·Can you recall anyone other than
10· ·Mr. Krasner who was authorized to speak to
11· ·Mr. Stockil with regard to the Lady May?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·If you turn to page 78, you see on line 20
14· ·Mr. Stockil is asked:
15· · · · · · · · · "You've never met or spoken with
16· · · · · · ·her," meaning Mei Guo, "either, correct?"
17· · · · · · · · · "That is correct, yes."
18· · · · · · ·Is Mr. Stockil's testimony accurate that
19· ·you have never met or spoken with him?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
As of that date or up through
21· · · · present?
22· ·BY MR. LUFT:
23· · · · Q.· ·Why don't we start with just as of that
24· ·date.
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 96

·2· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever spoken with Mr. Stockil?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Could you look at the bottom of that page.
·5· · · · · · ·Starting at line 25, it says:
·6· · · · · · · · · "All directions on the Lady May's
·7· · · · · · ·movements comes from Ms. Guo through her
·8· · · · · · ·representatives.·
That means, doesn't it,
·9· · · · · · ·that none of the direction on the
10· · · · · · ·Lady May's movements come from Ms. Guo
11· · · · · · ·directly?"
12· · · · · · · · · "Answer:·
No, not to us, no.·
They
13· · · · · · ·come through the family office, that's
14· · · · · · ·correct."
15· · · · · · ·And then he identifies it as
16· ·Golden Spring.
17· · · · · · ·Do you agree that it's truthful testimony
18· ·that none of the direction regarding the Lady May's
19· ·movements came to Mr. Stockil and his company from
20· ·you directly?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
22· · · · A.· ·I agree.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·Do you see on page --
25· · · · · · ·MS. SONG:·
You were asking whether that's

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 97

·2· · · · truthful testimony, but the interpreter asked
·3· · · · whether she agrees, whether Ms. Guo agrees with
·4· · · · that.
·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
That's fine.·
I don't draw a
·6· · · · distinction.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Do you see on line 16 on page 79:
·9· · · · · · ·"MR. VARTAN:·
Your Honor, we would call
10· ·next Momchil Ivanov."
11· · · · · · ·Do you know who Mr. Ivanov is?
12· · · · A.· ·The captain at that time.
13· · · · Q.· ·If you turn to page 81, look at line 17.
14· ·Question to Mr. Ivanov was:
15· · · · · · · · · "I just want to find out whether you
16· · · · · · ·have ever met or spoken with Ms. Mei Guo."
17· · · · · · · · · "Answer:·
Not directly sir, no."
18· · · · · · ·Any reason to believe Mr. Ivanov's
19· ·testimony is not truthful and accurate?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
21· · · · A.· ·I'm not quite sure.·
Maybe there's the
22· ·issue with the language used.·
Because here it's
23· ·saying we've not spoken, but as far as I remember,
24· ·we sent messages to each other.
·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 98

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Mr. Ivanov says he's never met you.
·4· · · · · · ·Was that true at the time he gave that
·5· ·testimony?
·6· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Yes, you had never met Mr. Ivanov as of
·8· ·the time of the testimony; is that correct?
·9· · · · A.· ·That's correct.·
We never met.
10· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever met Mr. Ivanov to date?
11· · · · A.· ·No.
12· · · · Q.· ·When did Mr. Ivanov stop being the captain
13· ·of the Lady May?
14· · · · A.· ·I think it was probably during the
15· ·pandemic.·
During that time he was the captain in
16· ·Europe only.·
So I never met him.
17· · · · Q.· ·You don't recall what date the captain of
18· ·the Lady May left his post?
19· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
20· · · · Q.· ·And then you would agree with Mr. Ivanov
21· ·that he never received orders or directions from you
22· ·directly?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Mr. Luft, where are you
24· · · · reading from?
25· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
It's line 22 through 24.

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Page 99 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Thank you. ·3· · · · A.· ·I agree. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever met -- do you know who ·6· ·Craig Heaslop is? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Heaslop, H-E-A-S-L-O-P. ·8· · · · A.· ·Yes.· He is the captain that worked for ·9· ·the longest time on my yacht. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·And Mr. Vartan called him as a witness at 12· ·the hearing as well, correct? 13· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.· I'm not sure about the 14· ·details. 15· · · · Q.· ·Turn to page 83. 16· · · · · · ·Do you see there's a line that says: 17· · · · · · · · · "MR. VARTAN:· Your Honor, the 18· · · · · · ·defendant would call Craig Heaslop to the 19· · · · · · ·stand"? 20· · · · A.· ·Yes. 21· · · · Q.· ·And the defendant in this that Mr. Vartan 22· ·is referring to is your father, correct? 23· · · · A.· ·Wait a moment.· In which line? 24· · · · Q.· ·It's lines 1 through 2, and you're welcome 25· ·to read through to 6.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 100

·2· · · · A.· ·Okay.
·3· · · · · · ·Could you please repeat the question?
·4· · · · Q.· ·Sure.
·5· · · · · · ·When Mr. Vartan said, "Your Honor, the
·6· ·defendant would call Craig Heaslop to the stand,"
·7· ·the defendant he is referring to is your father,
·8· ·correct?
·9· · · · A.· ·I'm a little bit confused.·
I'm not sure.
10· · · · Q.· ·Was HK International a defendant in this
11· ·litigation?
12· · · · A.· ·This is from last year, correct?
13· · · · Q.· ·Yes.·　This is from February 2, 2022, the
14· ·PAX litigation against your father, Genever Holdings
15· ·Corp., and Genever Holdings LLC.
16· · · · A.· ·So you are asking me whether we are the
17· ·defendants, right?·　I mean my -- when I refer to
18· ·"we," it's HKI.
19· · · · Q.· ·My question was Mr. Vartan said the
20· ·defendant would call Craig Heaslop, and I just
21· ·wanted to confirm it's your understanding that the
22· ·defendant he's referring to is your father,
23· ·Mr. Kwok?
24· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure about the legal language.
25· · · · Q.· ·Sure.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 101

·2· · · · · · ·Was Mr. Vartan your father's counsel for
·3· ·this trial?
·4· · · · A.· ·No.
·5· · · · Q.· ·He represented you and Hong Kong
·6· ·International, correct?
·7· · · · A.· ·Correct.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you know Mr. Heaslop?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·Do you know him to be honest?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
12· · · · A.· ·As far as I know, yes.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·I want to point you to testimony, if you'd
15· ·turn to page 87.
16· · · · A.· ·(Witness complies.)
17· · · · Q.· ·Starting on line 21.
18· · · · · · ·And Mr. Heaslop was the captain of the
19· ·ship, correct?
20· · · · A.· ·Yes.
21· · · · Q.· ·Do you see on line 21, the witness says,
22· ·with regard to Mr. Kwok:
23· · · · · · · · · "He was on and off the yacht
24· · · · · · ·throughout the summer as usual.·
Specific
25· · · · · · ·dates I couldn't tell you."

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·Actually, let me strike that.·
Let's go to
·3· ·line 17 so we have context.
·4· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:·
Prior to October 2020,
·5· · · · · · ·when was the last time you recall Mr. Kwok
·6· · · · · · ·being on the yacht?"
·7· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
Prior to
·8· · · · · · ·October 2020?"
·9· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:·
Yes."
10· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
He was on and off the
11· · · · · · ·yacht throughout the summer as usual.
12· · · · · · ·Specific dates, I couldn't tell you
13· · · · · · ·retrospectively when they came and went."
14· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:·
Was he on the yacht for
15· · · · · · ·a significant part of the month of July?"
16· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
That was COVID.·
Yes,
17· · · · · · ·he was."
18· · · · · · ·Do you have any reason to believe that
19· · · · Mr. Heaslop's testimony with regard to your --
20· · · · how frequently your father was on the Lady May
21· · · · in the month of July 2020 is in any way
22· · · · inaccurate?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
24· · · · A.· ·It's accurate.
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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·The Court goes on:
·4· · · · · · · · · "How about during the month of
·5· · · · · · ·August 2020?"
·6· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
Yes."
·7· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:·
How about during the
·8· · · · · · ·month of September 2020?"
·9· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
I believe so, yes."
10· · · · · · ·Again, asking whether your father was on
11· ·the Lady May for a significant portion of that
12· ·month.
13· · · · · · ·Do you have any reason to believe that
14· ·Mr. Heaslop's testimony with regard to the months of
15· ·August and September is inaccurate?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
17· · · · A.· ·It's accurate.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·If we go to line 13, the Court asks
20· ·Ms. Heaslop:
21· · · · · · · · · "As between Mr. Kwok and Ms. Guo, how
22· · · · · · ·would you compare the duration of the time
23· · · · · · ·each of them spent on the yacht during
24· · · · · · ·July, August, September 2020?"
25· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
During those months

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Page 104 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·Mr. Kwok spent more time on the yacht than ·3· · · · · · ·Ms. Guo." ·4· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:· A lot or little more ·5· · · · · · ·time?" ·6· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:· It was a lot more ·7· · · · · · ·time." ·8· · · · · · ·Ms. Guo, do you have any reason to believe ·9· ·that Mr. Heaslop's testimony that I just read to you 10· ·was not truthful and accurate? 11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 12· · · · A.· ·It's accurate. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·Turn to page 89.· If you look at lines 10 15· ·through 14: 16· · · · · · · · · "Question:· Paragraph 17 of your 17· · · · · · ·affidavit says that you had a subsequent 18· · · · · · ·conversation with a representative of 19· · · · · · ·Hong Kong USA and confirmed that the yacht 20· · · · · · ·was no longer needed in New York.· That 21· · · · · · ·person wasn't Mei Guo, was it?" 22· · · · · · · · · "Answer:· No." 23· · · · · · ·Ms. Guo, is that accurate testimony that, 24· · · · in fact, you were not the person who told 25· · · · Captain Heaslop that the yacht was no longer

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 105

·2· · · · needed in New York?
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·4· · · · A.· ·It's true.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
If you turn to page 93,
·7· ·Captain Heaslop was asked questions with regard to
·8· ·when your father was aboard the Lady May.
·9· · · · · · ·You can also look at line 2.·
It says:
10· · · · · · · · · "My question for you is:·
When he was
11· · · · · · ·aboard, he directed the movements of the
12· · · · · · ·yacht, right?·
I don't mean he piloted it,
13· · · · · · ·but he told you where he wanted to go?"
14· · · · · · · · · "Answer:·
Yeah."
15· · · · · · ·Do you see that testimony?
16· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you have any reason to believe that
18· ·testimony is not truthful and accurate?
19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
20· · · · A.· ·No.·
It's true.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
I'm going to ask you to turn to
23· ·page 95.
24· · · · · · ·If we look at page -- line 12, the Court
25· ·asks:

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·1· · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 106

·2· · · · "You did testify, sir" -- this is,
·3· ·again, Captain Heaslop -- "during July,
·4· ·August, September of 2020, Mr. Kwok was a
·5· ·frequent guest on the yacht, and
·6· ·presumably he told you where he wanted to
·7· ·go?"
·8· · · · "THE WITNESS:·
That's right,
·9· ·Your Honor.·
There's like local movements
10· ·in the northern area or the southern area
11· ·where the guests are using the boat.
12· ·There's direction about where they want to
13· ·go and what they want to do on any given
14· ·day.
15· · · · "What I meant -- what I was talking
16· ·about, about not having direction, was for
17· ·the repositioning of the yacht seasonally
18· ·between the northeast and southeast.·
That
19· ·came from the office."
20· · · · "THE COURT:·
I see.·
So if Mr. Kwok
21· ·wanted to go to Nantucket, you would take
22· ·him there?"
23· · · · "THE WITNESS:·
Absolutely, yeah."
24· · · · "THE COURT:·
If he wanted to go to
25· ·Bar Harbor, Maine, you would take him to

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Page 107 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·Bar Harbor, Maine?" ·3· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:· Yes." ·4· · · · · · ·Do you have any reason to believe that ·5· ·that testimony that Captain Heaslop gave in response ·6· ·to the Court's questions is in any way not truthful ·7· ·or inaccurate? ·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection.· Do you want to ·9· · · · ask her to read through line 6 of page 96? I 10· · · · just wanted to note that for my own note. 11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· You have a transcript.· You can 12· · · · read. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·Go ahead and answer, Ms. Guo. 15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Just asking a simple 16· · · · question. 17· · · · A.· ·Yes. 18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Why don't we take a break for 19· · · · lunch. 20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Sure. 21· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:· It is 2:04 p.m.· We're 22· · · · going off the record. 23· · · · · · ·(At 2:04 p.m. a luncheon recess was 24· · · · taken.) 25· · · · · · ·(At 2:58 p.m. the deposition resumes.)

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Page 108 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ·3· · · · · · A F T E R N O O N· ·S E S S I O N ·4· ·\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ·5· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:· The time is 2:58 p.m. ·6· · · · We are back on the record. ·7· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·8· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I asked you a question earlier ·9· ·about Hong Kong International and whether it filed 10· ·taxes. 11· · · · · · ·I neglected to ask you:· Do you pay income 12· ·taxes in this country? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 14· · · · A.· ·Yes. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·Did you declare any income last year? 17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 18· · · · A.· ·Yes. 19· ·BY MR. LUFT: 20· · · · Q.· ·What was the source of that income? 21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 22· · · · A.· ·Pangu CEO. 23· ·BY MR. LUFT: 24· · · · Q.· ·You told me that Pangu Plaza was seized a 25· ·year ago.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·Do you continue to be paid as the Pangu
·3· ·CEO after its seizure?
·4· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Do you have a copy of your tax returns
·6· ·that you filed in this country?
·7· · · · A.· ·I don't have them now.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Who does?
·9· · · · A.· ·At home.·
It's in my home.
10· · · · Q.· ·You have copies in your home?
11· · · · A.· ·Yes.
12· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Since you acquired Hong Kong
13· ·International in 2017, have you earned any income or
14· ·revenue from it?
15· · · · A.· ·No.
16· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
We have not received copies of
17· · · · Ms. Guo's taxes.·
We have requested them.
I
18· · · · will renew my request that you turn them over
19· · · · to us.
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Sure.·
You can submit it in
21· · · · writing.·
We'll take it under advisement.
22· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I have already submitted it in
23· · · · writing.·
You have open requests for it.·
I'll
24· · · · ask you to please turn them over.
25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Well, I don't know if there

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 110

·2· · · · were objections made.·
I presume that there
·3· · · · were.·　But I'll certainly take a look.
·4· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:·
So I have a question.·
What
·5· · · · does my personal income tax have to do with
·6· · · · this case?
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You don't have to -- that's
·8· · · · my objection.·　We'll make sure we lodge it.
·9· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:·
Okay.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, your father founded Hong Kong
12· ·International in 2006, correct?
13· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
14· · · · Q.· ·And your father owned and controlled
15· ·Hong Kong International until October 2014, correct?
16· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
17· · · · Q.· ·And your father transferred Hong Kong
18· ·International to Ms. Qu in October 2014, correct?
19· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
20· · · · Q.· ·You gave testimony stating -- strike that.
21· · · · · · ·At the time you came to this country in
22· ·2017, Ms. Qu was the sole member of Hong Kong
23· ·International, correct?
24· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
25· · · · Q.· ·Do you know if, at any time after your

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·father transferred Hong Kong International to Ms. Qu
·3· ·in October 2014 and the time you came to the
·4· ·United States, anyone other than Ms. Qu was a member
·5· ·of Hong Kong International?
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware if Ms. Qu entered into any
·8· ·agreements with anyone regarding control of
·9· ·Hong Kong International between October 2014 and the
10· ·time she transferred you the company in 2017?
11· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
12· · · · Q.· ·How did you meet -- when did you first
13· ·meet Ms. Qu?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·What's your best recollection of when you
16· ·first recall knowing Ms. Qu?
17· · · · A.· ·When I was in China.
18· · · · Q.· ·Can you be any more specific?
19· · · · · · ·Were you a young girl at the time,
20· ·teenager, adult?
21· · · · A.· ·I was an adult.
22· · · · Q.· ·And how did you come to know Ms. Qu?
23· · · · A.· ·She works with my brother.
24· · · · Q.· ·When did she work with your brother?
25· · · · A.· ·I don't know.

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of 211

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 112

·2· · · · Q.· ·Where did she work with your brother?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·4· · · · Q.· ·In what country did she work with your
·5· ·brother?
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't know that, about that either.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever see your brother and Ms. Qu
·8· ·at work together?
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
10· · · · Q.· ·What business was Ms. Qu and your brother
11· ·in?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
13· · · · Q.· ·Did your brother introduce you to Ms. Qu?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·Where did you meet Ms. Qu?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, asked and
17· · · · answered.
18· · · · A.· ·In China.
19· ·BY MR. LUFT:
20· · · · Q.· ·Where in China?
21· · · · A.· ·Beijing.
22· · · · Q.· ·Where in Beijing?
23· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
24· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if you met Ms. Qu prior to
25· ·2014?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 113

·2· · · · A.· ·Before 2014, I don't remember.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that Ms. Qu was your
·4· ·father's executive assistant?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that Ms. Qu was your
·7· ·father's account manager?
·8· · · · A.· ·No.·
I don't know.·
No, I don't know.
·9· · · · Q.· ·You state in your affidavit that:
10· · · · · · · · · "I understand that Ms. Qu was a
11· · · · · · ·trusted business partner of my brother's
12· · · · · · ·as well as my uncles and cousins."
13· · · · · · ·What is that understanding based on?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Which paragraph are you
15· · · · reading?
16· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Paragraph 8.
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Thank you.
18· · · · · · ·MS. SONG:·
Ms. Interpreter, I don't think
19· · · · you finished translating the entire question.
20· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
I thought I finished.
21· · · · Which part did I miss?
22· · · · · · ·MS. SONG:·
"I'll be honest, what's the
23· · · · basis of that understanding."
24· · · · A.· ·My brother told me.
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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 114

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·What did he tell you?
·4· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·5· · · · Q.· ·When did he tell you this?
·6· · · · A.· ·So I think it was before Ms. Qu came to
·7· ·the US.
·8· · · · Q.· ·When was that?
·9· · · · A.· ·2017.
10· · · · Q.· ·Why did your brother say this to you?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
12· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·So you have no personal knowledge of
15· ·whether Ms. Qu is a trusted business partner of your
16· ·brother's, as well as your uncles and cousins, only
17· ·what your brother told you, correct?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
19· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Who drafted your declaration for you that
22· ·has been marked Exhibit 1?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
24· · · · A.· ·That's this one, right?
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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 115

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Yes, ma'am.
·4· · · · A.· ·My counsel.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Which counsel?
·6· · · · A.· ·Lee.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　When you say "my uncles and my
·8· ·cousins," which uncles and cousins are you referring
·9· ·to?
10· · · · · · ·This is in paragraph 8 of your affidavit
11· ·declaration.
12· · · · A.· ·So that would be referring to whom I
13· ·mentioned previously, the fourth, fifth, and sixth
14· ·older brothers of my dad.
15· · · · Q.· ·Do you know any business dealings that
16· ·Ms. Qu entered into with those uncles?
17· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
18· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Counsel, did you say
19· · · · Ms. Guo or Mr. Guo or who?
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Ms. Qu.
21· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Oh.·
Correction of the
22· · · · interpreter's interpretation just now.
23· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·Do you know -- strike that.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·+ And do you know which cousins Ms. Qu was
·3· ·purported to be a trusted business partner of?
·4· · · · A.· ·So that would be the same answer as I gave
·5· ·this morning.·
I don't want to reveal their names
·6· ·here.
·7· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'll ask that you -- again, I
·8· · · · want to hold open if you're going to -- are you
·9· · · · going to instruct her not to answer?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Yes.
11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay.·
Hold that open.
12· ·BY MR. LUFT:
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you know of any business deals that
14· ·Ms. Qu did with any of your cousins?
15· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
16· · · · Q.· ·How old is Ms. Qu, approximately?
17· · · · A.· ·Over 30.
18· · · · Q.· ·A lot over 30 or a little over 30?
19· · · · A.· ·I think close to 40.·
A lot over 30.·
She
20· ·should be older than me.
21· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
In 2014 -- well, do you recall what
22· ·year your brother graduated college?
23· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
24· · · · Q.· ·You agree that in 2016, your brother was
25· ·approximately 26 years old?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 117

·2· · · · A.· ·I don't think so.
·3· · · · Q.· ·How old do you think he was in 2016?
·4· · · · A.· ·I think he was 30.
·5· · · · Q.· ·When was your brother born?
·6· · · · A.· ·My God.·　'86 or '87.·
I'm not quite sure.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　The Lady May was purchased by
·8· ·Hong Kong International, correct?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·And that was in --
11· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Purchased?
12· · · · · · ·Counsel, you said "purchased," right?
13· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Yes.
14· · · · A.· ·Yes.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·That was in February 2015, correct?
17· · · · A.· ·Yes.
18· · · · Q.· ·And at that time Hong Kong International
19· ·had been transferred to Ms. Qu by your father,
20· ·correct?
21· · · · A.· ·2015, right.
22· · · · Q.· ·In February of 2015, when they purchased
23· ·the Lady May, correct?
24· · · · A.· ·Yes.
25· · · · Q.· ·And Hong Kong International was

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 118

·2· ·transferred.
·3· · · · · · ·Ms. Qu, are you aware, paid no money to
·4· ·your father for Hong Kong International?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Do you know how much it cost to purchase
·7· ·the Lady May?
·8· · · · A.· ·Over 20 million euros.
·9· · · · Q.· ·And the money to pay for Hong Kong
10· ·International's purchase of Lady May did not come
11· ·from Ms. Qu, correct?
12· · · · A.· ·Correct.
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you know where the funds Hong Kong
14· ·International used to purchase the Lady May came
15· ·from?
16· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
17· · · · Q.· ·You state in paragraph 9 of your
18· ·affidavit, which is Exhibit 1:
19· · · · · · · · · "From the time of its purchase, the
20· · · · · · ·Lady May was always intended to be my boat
21· · · · · · ·given my love of the ocean.·
Indeed, it
22· · · · · · ·bears my name."
23· · · · · · ·Do you see where you put that in your
24· ·affidavit?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 119

·2· · · · Q.· ·Now, when the Lady May was purchased by
·3· ·Hong Kong International, Hong Kong International was
·4· ·in the name of Ms. Qu, not any of your family
·5· ·members, correct?
·6· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Did Ms. Qu ever tell you why she had
·8· ·Hong Kong International purchase the Lady May in
·9· ·February 2015?
10· · · · A.· ·No.
11· · · · Q.· ·So when you say "The Lady May was always
12· ·intended to be my boat," you don't have any personal
13· ·knowledge as to what Hong Kong International's
14· ·intention was when it purchased the Lady May,
15· ·correct?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
17· · · · A.· ·I knew the intention for the purchase of
18· ·Lady May.
19· ·BY MR. LUFT:
20· · · · Q.· ·If Ms. Qu never told you why Hong Kong
21· ·International purchased the Lady May, who at
22· ·Hong Kong International told you why it purchased
23· ·the Lady May?
24· · · · A.· ·My brother told me.
25· · · · Q.· ·Your brother has no role at Hong Kong

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·International, correct?
·3· · · · A.· ·Correct.
·4· · · · Q.· ·And your brother wasn't the person who
·5· ·purchased the Lady May, correct?
·6· · · · A.· ·That's not correct.·
He was the person who
·7· ·purchased it.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Are you saying that Hong Kong
·9· ·International didn't purchase the Lady May, but
10· ·rather your brother did?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, misstates
12· · · · testimony.
13· · · · A.· ·Who and how -- who bought Lady May and
14· ·how, I didn't know the specifics.·
All I knew is
15· ·that my brother bought the yacht as a present for
16· ·me.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·But your brother wasn't the person who
19· ·purchased the Lady May, was he?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, misstates the
21· · · · testimony.
22· · · · A.· ·I don't understand your question.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·You've testified that Hong Kong
25· ·International purchased the Lady May in

Page 121 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·February 2015, correct? ·3· · · · A.· ·My understanding is that this company owns ·4· ·the boat. ·5· · · · Q.· ·Hong Kong International owned the boat in ·6· ·February 2015, correct? ·7· · · · A.· ·Yes. ·8· · · · Q.· ·In fact, your brother was not involved in ·9· ·any transfers of the Lady May before the Lady May 10· ·was transferred to you in June of 2017, correct? 11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 12· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 13· ·BY MR. LUFT: 14· · · · Q.· ·Well, if you open up the transcript from 15· ·the hearing to page 47, which is Exhibit 2. 16· · · · A.· ·Forty-seven?· Page 47, right? 17· · · · Q.· ·Page 47.· We'll start on page 46, line 22. 18· ·You state: 19· · · · · · · · · "Your Honor, it is from Hong Kong 20· · · · · · ·International to Ms. Qu, then it was 21· · · · · · ·transferred to me.· It has never been 22· · · · · · ·transferred to my brother." 23· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:· So you received the boat 24· · · · · · ·from Ms. Qu after she received the boat 25· · · · · · ·from Hong Kong International, correct?"

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
Yes, Your Honor."
·3· · · · · · · · · "THE COURT:·
Your brother was not
·4· · · · · · ·involved in any of the transfers before
·5· · · · · · ·you acquired the boat, according to your
·6· · · · · · ·testimony?"
·7· · · · · · · · · "THE WITNESS:·
Correct."
·8· · · · · · ·Was that truthful and accurate testimony
·9· ·that you gave to the Court?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
And I'm just going to
11· · · · interpose an objection, just an objection.
12· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·That was truthful and accurate testimony
15· ·that you gave, correct?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Again, objection.·
I think
17· · · · there's confusion between transferring and
18· · · · purchase, but --
19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Sir, I'm reading the transcript
20· · · · and saying is it truthful and accurate.·
Please
21· · · · don't introduce new words.·
We are really
22· · · · getting -- this is becoming a huge problem
23· · · · here.
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I've been mostly quiet.
25· · · · You're talking about purchase and transfer.

Page 123 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · You're talking about -- ·3· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan, I read a piece of ·4· · · · testimony and I asked if it was truthful and ·5· · · · accurate.· She read the same thing. ·6· · · · · · ·I didn't say the word "purchased."· I read ·7· · · · it directly here.· It says "transfer."· It's a ·8· · · · question that a Court asked her and she gave an ·9· · · · answer to. 10· · · · · · ·Please stop trying to interfere with this 11· · · · testimony. 12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I am not. 13· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· You are, and it's completely 14· · · · improper. 15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· You're saying the lead-in 16· · · · questions to this were all about purchasing. 17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Oh, my gosh.· Mr. Vartan -- 18· · · · A.· ·I can't remember what is the question. 19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Yeah, I had a feeling that's 20· · · · where we were going to end up. 21· ·BY MR. LUFT: 22· · · · Q.· ·Okay, Ms. Guo.· Going back to the 23· ·testimony you gave in response to the Court's 24· ·question that I highlighted for you between -- on 25· ·page 46, line 16, through page 47, line 7, that was

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 125 of 211

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 124

·2· ·truthful and accurate testimony, correct?
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·4· · · · Q.· ·In February 2015, where were you located,
·5· ·Ms. Guo?
·6· · · · A.· ·Beijing, China.
·7· · · · Q.· ·What were you doing there?
·8· · · · A.· ·I was persecuted by the Chinese Communist
·9· ·Party.
10· · · · Q.· ·Where was your brother located at the
11· ·time?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·He was in the UK, wasn't he?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·Was he in China?
16· · · · A.· ·No.
17· · · · Q.· ·Was he in Hong Kong?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
19· · · · Q.· ·Why didn't the brother have the boat
20· ·transferred to himself if he was the purchaser in
21· ·February 2015?
22· · · · A.· ·Because the boat was purchased for me.
23· ·Because under the general circumstances at that
24· ·time, myself and all of my family members were
25· ·persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party.

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 126 of 211

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 125

·2· ·Everything we had was frozen.·
So it's impossible
·3· ·that it would be placed under his name.
·4· · · · Q.· ·But he wasn't in China, was he?
·5· · · · A.· ·That's right.·
But the Chinese Communist
·6· ·Party would not only set eyes on things we owned in
·7· ·China.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Qu was in Hong Kong, wasn't she?
·9· · · · A.· ·When?
10· · · · Q.· ·In February 2015.
11· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
12· · · · Q.· ·The Lady May has never been in your
13· ·brother's name, correct?
14· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
15· · · · Q.· ·And your brother has never held legal
16· ·title to the Lady May?
17· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
18· · · · Q.· ·And there's no legal document indicating
19· ·that your brother ever held any ownership interest
20· ·in the Lady May, correct?
21· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
22· · · · Q.· ·And your brother never transferred the
23· ·Lady May to you, did he?
24· · · · A.· ·Correct.
25· · · · Q.· ·And Ms. Qu never told you why Hong Kong

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·International purchased the Lady May, did she?
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·4· · · · A.· ·Never.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·When was the yacht which we refer to as
·7· ·the Lady May named?
·8· · · · A.· ·From the very beginning, when there was an
·9· ·intention to buy this boat, my brother was going to
10· ·name it Lady May.
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you know who actually named the boat?
12· · · · A.· ·I just mentioned it's my brother.
13· · · · Q.· ·In fact, your father named it the
14· ·Lady May, didn't he?
15· · · · A.· ·No.·
It's my brother.
16· · · · Q.· ·How do you know that?
17· · · · A.· ·He told me himself.
18· · · · Q.· ·When did he tell you that?
19· · · · A.· ·During the first phone call I received
20· ·after I was released by the Chinese Communist Party
21· ·in January 2015.
22· · · · Q.· ·So he told you this before anyone ever
23· ·purchased the Lady May?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
25· · · · A.· ·He told me that he would purchase --

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·purchase a boat as a present for me and also give it
·3· ·my name.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·Where did he get the money to purchase you
·6· ·a boat in his twenties?
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·8· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·9· ·BY MR. LUFT:
10· · · · Q.· ·Now, you state that the Lady May was
11· ·transferred to you on June 27, 2017, when you were
12· ·in the United States, correct?
13· · · · A.· ·Yes, it was June, but whether it was on
14· ·the 27th, I don't know.
15· · · · Q.· ·How did that transfer occur?·
Who reached
16· ·out to whom?
17· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
18· · · · Q.· ·Who told you that you were going to be
19· ·transferred, from Hong Kong International, the
20· ·Lady May?
21· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
22· · · · Q.· ·Where did the transaction take place?
23· · · · A.· ·New York.
24· · · · Q.· ·Where in New York?
25· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 129 of 211

I don't remember about

I'm going to ask the court

Do you have an additional
No big deal if you don't.

I
·8· ·others.　·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · Q.· ·Who was there?
·3· · · · A.· ·There was Ms. Qu.·
·4· ·other people.
·5· · · · Q.· ·You don't recall anyone else being there
·6· ·besides Ms. Qu?
·7· · · · A.· ·No, I don't recall, not that there is no
·9· · · · Q.· ·Were you advised by counsel on the
10· ·transaction?
11· · · · A.· ·I think probably, but I don't remember.
12· · · · Q.· ·Who was your lawyer?
13· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
14· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
15· · · · reporter to mark Mei Guo Deposition Exhibit 3,
16· · · · a document Bates-stamped HKI-14 through 20.
17· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 3 was received and marked
18· · · · for identification, as of this date.)
19· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:·
20· · · · copy?·
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, do you recognize this document?
23· · · · A.· ·I've seen it before.
24· · · · Q.· ·What is it?
25· · · · A.· ·What this is, isn't it written on it?

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 130 of 211

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 129

·2· ·think it's Lady May's Certificate of Registry.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Do you see on HKI-18 it indicates that the
·4· ·transferee is Mei Guo?
·5· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
·6· · · · Q.· ·And your address there is listed as
·7· ·Majestic View Manor, 20 South Bay Road, Hong Kong,
·8· ·correct?
·9· · · · A.· ·Where is it?
10· · · · Q.· ·Right at the top, under "Address."
11· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
12· · · · Q.· ·Earlier I asked you about that address.
13· · · · · · ·Does this refresh your recollection that,
14· ·in fact, you have resided at 20 South Bay Road,
15· ·Hong Kong?
16· · · · A.· ·I recall this address now, but I've never
17· ·resided there.
18· · · · Q.· ·Why did you list it as your address on
19· ·these official documents relating to the sale of the
20· ·Lady May and Hong Kong International?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
22· · · · A.· ·Because this address is our home address
23· ·in Hong Kong.
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·Meaning it's your father's address in

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 130

·2· ·Hong Kong?
·3· · · · A.· ·No.·
It's the home address of our entire
·4· ·family.
·5· · · · Q.· ·One hundred people live at this address?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·7· · · · A.· ·It's not likely that 100 people would go
·8· ·to Hong Kong at the same time.·
But even if we did,
·9· ·there would be enough room.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Is it your sworn testimony that this is
12· ·not the address that your father lived in in
13· ·Hong Kong?
14· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
Asked and
15· · · · answered.
16· · · · A.· ·I didn't say that.·
I don't know.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·All the stamps on this document have a
19· ·date of June 17 -- June 27, 2017.
20· · · · · · ·Do you see that, the circular stamps?
21· · · · A.· ·I see that.
22· · · · Q.· ·And there are stamps from Hong Kong,
23· ·correct?
24· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
25· · · · Q.· ·If you look at the circular stamps,

Case 22-50073 Doc 1604-1 Filed 03/27/23 Entered 03/27/23 14:12:10 Page 132 of 211

Page 131 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·there's a stamp "Duty, Hong Kong, 27.6.17." ·3· · · · · · ·Do you see that? ·4· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it. ·5· · · · Q.· ·You've seen this.· Do you think maybe this ·6· ·transaction was done in Hong Kong? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. ·8· · · · A.· ·It's not possible.· I'm 100 percent sure ·9· ·that it's in the US. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Do you know why there are Hong Kong stamps 12· ·on these documents? 13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 14· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 15· ·BY MR. LUFT: 16· · · · Q.· ·How much did you pay Ms. Qu for Hong Kong 17· ·International and its asset, the Lady May? 18· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 19· · · · Q.· ·If you look at the document, it says 20· ·"1 Hong Kong dollar." 21· · · · · · ·Does that refresh your recollection? 22· · · · A.· ·Yes.· I remember. 23· · · · Q.· ·Do you know when your father directed 24· ·Ms. Qu to transfer the Lady May to you? 25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection, misstates the

Page 132 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · testimony. ·3· · · · A.· ·My father didn't direct her. ·4· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·5· · · · Q.· ·Did Ms. Qu tell you that your father ·6· ·didn't direct her to do this? ·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection to form. ·8· · · · A.· ·There's never been this conversation.· She ·9· ·doesn't need to tell me.· That just didn't happen. 10· ·BY MR. LUFT: 11· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, let's be very clear here. 12· · · · · · ·Ms. Qu never told you that her father -- 13· ·that your father did not make an arrangement with 14· ·her to have the Lady May transferred to you, 15· ·correct? 16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· There are a lot of negatives 17· · · · in that question.· Maybe you want to restate. 18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Again, when I need your help, 19· · · · I'll ask. 20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· The question is wholly 21· · · · unclear.· I'm reading it. 22· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Mr. Vartan, you must be an 23· · · · amazing lawyer.· And I look forward to your 24· · · · depositions.· Until that time, I'm going to ask 25· · · · my questions, and then when you have your turn,

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · you'll ask yours.
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You can answer the question
·4· · · · if you understand.
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't quite understand this question.
·6· ·It's not only that she didn't tell me that my dad
·7· ·didn't make the arrangement; neither did she tell me
·8· ·that my mother didn't make the arrangement.
·9· · · · · · ·I don't know why my dad is coming out of
10· ·this conversation.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you're aware that the New York
13· ·State Supreme Court found your dad to be the
14· ·beneficial owner of the Lady May, correct?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
16· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·You don't know that the State Supreme
19· ·Court came down with a ruling that your father is
20· ·the beneficial owner and has control of the
21· ·Lady May?
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·That's your testimony?
25· · · · A.· ·I don't recall that I'm aware of that.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 134

·2· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall that the testimony we've
·3· ·been looking at is from a hearing specifically to
·4· ·determine who has beneficial ownership and control
·5· ·of the Lady May?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Same objection.
·7· · · · A.· ·Yes, I remember.
·8· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
The witness was just
·9· · · · explaining to the interpreter that she was
10· · · · answering the question.
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·And do you recall learning what the
13· ·outcome of that hearing was?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·Are you familiar with the entity Hong Kong
16· ·International USA?
17· · · · A.· ·Yes, I'm familiar with it.
18· · · · Q.· ·That's an entity that was formed on
19· ·April 17, 2020, correct?
20· · · · A.· ·It's 2020, but I don't remember the exact
21· ·time.
22· · · · Q.· ·Do you want to look at your declaration,
23· ·paragraph 11, and tell me if it says April 17, 2020?
24· · · · A.· ·Which paragraph?
25· · · · Q.· ·It's paragraph 11, helps you refresh your

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·recollection.
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
·4· · · · Q.· ·So from June 27, 2017, when Ms. Qu
·5· ·transferred you Hong Kong International and the
·6· ·Lady May, until April 17, 2020, Lady May was legally
·7· ·owned by Hong Kong International, correct?
·8· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Who formed Hong Kong International USA?
10· · · · A.· ·Myself.
11· · · · Q.· ·When did you do that?
12· · · · A.· ·I think it was early 2022.·
I don't
13· ·remember the exact time.
14· · · · Q.· ·If I told you Hong Kong International USA
15· ·corporate documents indicate it was formed in 2018,
16· ·would that refresh your recollection about when it
17· ·was formed?
18· · · · A.· ·Can I see this document?
19· · · · Q.· ·Do you disagree?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
She asked for her memory to
21· · · · be refreshed.
22· · · · · · ·MS. SONG:·
I have a point of
23· · · · clarification.·
I believe Ms. Guo said it was
24· · · · from early 2020, but the interpreter said it
25· · · · was early 2022.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · A.· ·I can't remember.
·3· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
I think I did say 2020.
·4· · · · Thank you.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you were not the sole shareholder
·7· ·of Hong Kong USA when it was formed either, were
·8· ·you?
·9· · · · A.· ·I was.
10· · · · Q.· ·In fact, you became the sole shareholder
11· ·of Hong Kong USA in April 2019; isn't that the
12· ·facts?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm just objecting.·
If
14· · · · there's a document you want to show her --
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, stop interrupting
16· · · · my examination.·
I didn't ask her about a
17· · · · document.·
If I want to show her one, I will.
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
She asked you for a document.
19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
That's not how it works.
20· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.·
I'll have to see the
21· ·document.
22· ·BY MR. LUFT:
23· · · · Q.· ·In fact, Ms. Guo, sitting here today you
24· ·don't know anything about -- you don't recall
25· ·anything about the formation of Hong Kong USA,

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· ·correct?
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Only misstates the testimony.
·4· · · · Objection.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·Do you know when Hong Kong USA was formed?
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Are you asking a different
·8· · · · question?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, stop.
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
There was a question pending.
11· · · · I'm just looking for a clean record.
12· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay, Mr. Vartan.·
I'll

13· · · · withdraw my question.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, please tell me the date Hong Kong
16· ·USA was formed.
17· · · · A.· ·Let me think about it.·
I really can't
18· ·remember.
19· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, do you remember if you were the
20· ·sole shareholder when Hong Kong USA was formed?
21· · · · A.· ·I was.
22· · · · Q.· ·And if the corporate documents indicate
23· ·otherwise, how would you explain that?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
25· · · · A.· ·Your question now is regarding

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·shareholder, right?
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·You becoming the sole shareholder of
·5· ·Hong Kong USA, correct.
·6· · · · A.· ·So my understanding of that is 100 percent
·7· ·ownership of the company, correct.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Just only person who holds the shares?
·9· · · · A.· ·The person who holds the shares.
10· · · · Q.· ·Let's just move on.
11· · · · · · ·Okay.·
April 17, 2020, you changed the
12· ·Lady May from literally being owned by Hong Kong
13· ·International to Hong Kong International USA.
14· · · · · · ·What prompted you to make that change?
15· · · · A.· ·I just thought that in the US, this
16· ·company would be easier to manage.·
So I added
17· ·"USA."
18· · · · Q.· ·In fact, you did so because you were
19· ·advised by counsel to do so, right?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
21· · · · Q.· ·You want to read your declaration,
22· ·paragraph 11?·
"I did so upon the advice of my
23· ·counsel."
24· · · · · · ·Do you see that?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 139

·2· · · · Q.· ·Who is that counsel?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·What prompted you to seek advice of
·5· ·counsel with regard to this issue about the
·6· ·registration and ownership of the Lady May?
·7· · · · A.· ·I think that would just be a basic thing
·8· ·you would do, doing business.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Why didn't you do it anytime in the
10· ·three years prior to when you were in the
11· ·United States and held the Lady May as its owner?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·Did you speak to counsel directly yourself
14· ·or did you speak to someone else who had spoken to
15· ·counsel to get this advice?
16· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if the counsel was from the
18· ·law firm named Hodgson Russ?
19· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
20· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever speak with Ms. Wang with
21· ·regard to this transfer of ownership to Hong Kong
22· ·International USA?
23· · · · A.· ·By Ms. Wang, are you referring to Yvette?
24· · · · Q.· ·Yes.
25· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · Q.· ·Today, other than the Lady May and the
·3· ·\$37 million that you took as a loan from Himalaya,
·4· ·does Hong Kong International USA have any other
·5· ·assets?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection to form.
·7· · · · A.· ·No.
·8· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·9· · · · Q.· ·Hong Kong International USA has no bank
10· ·accounts, correct?
11· · · · A.· ·Correct.
12· · · · Q.· ·And before that, from the time you took
13· ·control of Hong Kong International in 2017 until the
14· ·Lady May was transferred to Hong Kong USA in 2020,
15· ·Hong Kong International had no bank accounts,
16· ·correct?
17· · · · A.· ·That, I don't know.
18· · · · Q.· ·Hong Kong International USA has no
19· ·directors, correct?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
21· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'm going to mark as Mei Guo
22· · · · Exhibit 4 a June 7, 2021, letter from
23· · · · Lee Vartan to Edward Moss.
24· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 4 was received and marked
25· · · · for identification, as of this date.)

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, on June 7, 2021, Mr. Vartan was
·4· ·your counsel, correct?
·5· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Do you see in the second paragraph
·7· ·Mr. Vartan states on behalf of Hong Kong
·8· ·International:
·9· · · · · · · · · "Hong Kong International has no
10· · · · · · ·directors, officers, or employees; has no
11· · · · · · ·dedicated email servers or email suffixes;
12· · · · · · ·does not file tax returns; and has no bank
13· · · · · · ·account and it is not otherwise
14· · · · · · ·capitalized."
15· · · · · · ·Do you see that sentence?
16· · · · A.· ·Yes.
17· · · · Q.· ·Was Mr. Vartan truthful and accurate when
18· ·he made that statement to Mr. Moss?
19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
20· · · · A.· ·Yes.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·Since Mr. Vartan's June 7, 2021, letter,
23· ·is it still true that Hong Kong International has no
24· ·directors, officers, or employees, has no dedicated
25· ·email server or email suffix, does not file tax

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·returns, and has no bank accounts and is not
·3· ·otherwise capitalized?
·4· · · · A.· ·You are referring to after this date; is
·5· ·that correct?
·6· · · · Q.· ·I'm asking after Mr. Vartan sent this
·7· ·letter on June 7, 2021, is that statement still true
·8· ·about Hong Kong International from as of June 8,
·9· ·2021, up through the present?
10· · · · A.· ·For all the other information, I confirmed
11· ·that is true.·
But as to whether there's still no
12· ·directors or officers, that I am not sure.
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you know of any directors or officers
14· ·of Hong Kong International USA today?
15· · · · A.· ·So today, at this moment, probably none.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you think sometime between June 7,
17· ·2021, and today there may have been a time when
18· ·Hong Kong International USA had directors and
19· ·officers?
20· · · · A.· ·I'm not quite certain.·
That's why I
21· ·pointed this out.·
I'm not sure.
22· · · · Q.· ·Throughout this whole time period, you
23· ·have remained the sole member of Hong Kong
24· ·International USA?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes, that's correct.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · Q.· ·Has Hong Kong International USA ever had
·3· ·any board meetings?
·4· · · · A.· ·No.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Have there ever been any resolutions
·6· ·passed with regard to Hong Kong International?
·7· · · · A.· ·No.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Are you familiar with the address
·9· ·162 East 64th Street?
10· · · · A.· ·Yeah, it sounds like I've heard about this
11· ·address.
12· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever been there?
13· · · · A.· ·I really don't remember.
14· · · · Q.· ·What's the address of Hong Kong
15· ·International USA?
16· · · · A.· ·It's probably the address you just
17· ·mentioned.
18· · · · Q.· ·When you say it's probably that address,
19· ·is that because I just mentioned it or you recall
20· ·that's the address?
21· · · · A.· ·I recall now.
22· · · · Q.· ·Is there an office for Hong Kong
23· ·International USA at that address?
24· · · · A.· ·No.
25· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that your father has

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· ·numerous businesses that he has listed at that
·3· ·address?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Who pays the expenses of Hong Kong USA?
·8· · · · A.· ·My brother.
·9· · · · Q.· ·In fact, those expenses have been paid by
10· ·Golden Spring and Lamp Capital, correct?
11· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure about the specifics.·
All I
12· ·know is that it's paid by my brother.
13· · · · Q.· ·Well, if we look at your affidavit at
14· ·paragraph 12.
15· · · · · · ·Do you see that?·
This is Exhibit 1.
16· · · · A.· ·Paragraph 12?
17· · · · Q.· ·You see when you're discussing the
18· ·expenses of Lady May that they're all paid for by
19· ·Golden Spring and Lamp Capital?
20· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
21· · · · Q.· ·There's no mention of your brother in that
22· ·paragraph paying the expenses, correct?
23· · · · A.· ·But the company is my brother's.
24· · · · Q.· ·So Golden Spring and Lamp Capital are your
25· ·brother's companies?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 145

·2· · · · A.· ·Yes.·
My brother's family office.
·3· · · · Q.· ·What does your brother do to get the funds
·4· ·to Golden Spring and Lamp Capital?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·6· · · · Q.· ·In the complaint you filed in this action,
·7· ·you make multiple references to Hong Kong USA's
·8· ·representatives.
·9· · · · · · ·Who are you referring to when you say
10· ·Hong Kong USA's representatives were the ones who
11· ·directed Lady May's captain where to move?
12· · · · A.· ·The majority of the times, I was referring
13· ·to Max.
14· · · · Q.· ·And Max is Max Krasner?
15· · · · A.· ·Yes.
16· · · · Q.· ·Anyone else who is HK USA's representative
17· ·other than Max Krasner?
18· · · · A.· ·Yes.·
But those others stayed for a very
19· ·short period of time, so I don't remember their
20· ·names.
21· · · · Q.· ·You also state in your complaint that you,
22· ·directly and through your representatives, are
23· ·solely responsible for directing Lady May's
24· ·operations and movements.
25· · · · · · ·Who are your representatives being

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 146

·2· ·referenced in the complaint?
·3· · · · A.· ·So just like I just mentioned, for the
·4· ·majority of the times it's Max.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Max Krasner?
·6· · · · A.· ·Max Krasner.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Do you have Max Krasner's phone number?
·8· · · · A.· ·No.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Do you have his email address?
10· · · · A.· ·No.
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you know his home address?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
13· · · · Q.· ·When you want to get in touch with
14· ·Max Krasner, where would you call?
15· · · · A.· ·I use software to call him.
16· · · · Q.· ·Software to what?·
What software?
17· · · · A.· ·I change them very often.·
There's no
18· ·software that I use all the time.
19· · · · Q.· ·Are you referring to a messaging app?
20· · · · A.· ·I can also use it for messaging.
21· · · · Q.· ·Could you please share with me what
22· ·address or number you would use through the
23· ·messaging app to contact Max Krasner?
24· · · · A.· ·I never use any software that is bundled
25· ·with my phone number.·
So I don't have the number.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 147

·2· · · · Q.· ·For whatever messaging software you use,
·3· ·there has to be some piece of contact information
·4· ·from Max Krasner.
·5· · · · · · ·What is that contact information that
·6· ·whatever software you're using employs to contact
·7· ·Max Krasner?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·9· · · · A.· ·Are you referring to all of the
10· ·information throughout this whole time?
11· ·BY MR. LUFT:
12· · · · Q.· ·I'll start with any of the information.
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
For which particular
14· · · · question?
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Just -- you don't have to read
16· · · · it for him.
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I was asking you.
18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
You have a live stream.·
You
19· · · · can read it.
20· · · · A.· ·In the early days, I used WhatsApp,
21· ·Telegram, et cetera.
22· · · · · · ·And then and now, I don't have any.·
It's
23· ·been a long time since I last contacted him.
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·Did you search for all of your

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·communications on WhatsApp and Telegram that you had
·3· ·with Max Krasner in connection with this litigation?
·4· · · · A.· ·No, I didn't.·
I change my mobile phone
·5· ·every month.·
I will never keep this information.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Regardless of changing your phone, the app
·7· ·stays the same, right?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·9· · · · · · ·Only what you know.
10· · · · A.· ·It's not the same.
11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Counsel, we've requested those
12· · · · communications.·
You failed to produce them.
13· · · · I'd ask that you please produce them.
14· · · · · · ·I'm going to hold the deposition open
15· · · · pending receipt of the information so I can ask
16· · · · questions about it.
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I think she said she doesn't
18· · · · have them.·
We'll look again.
19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Counsel, you understand how
20· · · · that works, that it is not tied to a specific
21· · · · phone, don't you?
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
No.
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
You don't understand that?
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I don't understand the inner
25· · · · workings of WhatsApp, no.

Page 149 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I don't think you need to ·3· · · · understand the inner workings of WhatsApp. ·4· · · · · · ·You have a phone, correct? ·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Yes. ·6· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Do you know when you log in ·7· · · · that it's not dependent on that phone, that you ·8· · · · can just look what's on that app on any phone? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I had no idea. ^ 10· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Okay, Counsel.· You should 11· · · · speak to Mr. Romney, who is much more tech 12· · · · savvy, and he can help you with this. 13· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:· I'm not very tech savvy. 14· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· But I do know you know how to 15· · · · use a phone, Aaron. 16· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:· I do know how to use a phone, 17· · · · but I don't know anything about these apps. 18· ·BY MR. LUFT: 19· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you testified that Mr. Krasner no 20· ·longer is at Golden Spring. 21· · · · · · ·Has Mr. Krasner ever been an employee of 22· ·HK International? 23· · · · A.· ·No. 24· · · · Q.· ·When you needed to speak to someone at 25· ·Lamp Capital, who would you speak to?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · A.· ·I will contact my brother.
·3· · · · Q.· ·So when you have just any questions about
·4· ·HK International's expenses or anything that needs
·5· ·to be done, you just call your brother directly?
·6· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Now that Max Krasner and Ms. Wang are no
·8· ·longer with Golden Spring, when you had to ask any
·9· ·questions on behalf of HK International, who were
10· ·HK International's representatives?
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
Confusing
12· · · · question.
13· · · · A.· ·Now there's no one.·
When I have a
14· ·question, I just call my brother.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·So if you wanted to move the Lady May or
17· ·give permission for someone to go on -- strike the
18· ·first part.
19· · · · · · ·If you wanted to give permission for a
20· ·person to be a guest on the Lady May today, who
21· ·would you call?
22· · · · A.· ·At this moment, I don't have access to use
23· ·my boat.·
So I don't need to call anybody.
24· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time there were any
25· ·guests on the Lady May?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 151

·2· · · · A.· ·That's when the boat was still in Europe,
·3· ·before it returned to the US.·
My brother used it.
·4· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time your father was on
·5· ·the Lady May?
·6· · · · A.· ·So you mean getting onto the boat?
A
·7· ·while ago, he went to take a look.·
But for staying
·8· ·on the boat, I think that was one or two years ago,
·9· ·before the pandemic.
10· · · · Q.· ·When was the last time your father was
11· ·physically on the Lady May?
12· · · · A.· ·I think it was not long ago.·
I don't
13· ·remember the exact time.
14· · · · Q.· ·What's your best recollection?
15· · · · A.· ·It was in winter, anyway.
16· · · · Q.· ·This winter?
17· · · · A.· ·I think so.
18· · · · Q.· ·Were you with him?
19· · · · A.· ·No.
20· · · · Q.· ·Who did you call, or did you call anyone,
21· ·to give him permission to go onto the boat?
22· · · · A.· ·He called me and asked me about it.
23· · · · Q.· ·Your father called you and asked if he
24· ·could go on the boat?
25· · · · A.· ·That's right.·
He said he was -- just

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·happened to pass by the boat in Connecticut.·
He saw
·3· ·the boat and wanted to go onto it to take a look.
·4· ·And he asked me if that's okay.
·5· · · · · · ·I said "Go ahead."
·6· · · · Q.· ·Did you communicate that your father was
·7· ·coming onto the boat to anyone?
·8· · · · A.· ·No.·
It wasn't like he was going anywhere.
·9· ·He just wanted to get onto the boat to take a look.
10· · · · Q.· ·Was there a crew on the boat at the time?
11· · · · A.· ·Yes.
12· · · · Q.· ·Did you call the crew and tell them that
13· ·he was coming onto the boat?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·Who in the crew would you have called?·
Do
16· ·you have any of their phone numbers?
17· · · · A.· ·The captain.·
I have the captain's number.
18· · · · Q.· ·Is there any evidence on your phone that
19· ·you called the captain to tell him that your father
20· ·was coming on the boat?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
22· · · · A.· ·My answer is that I don't remember if I
23· ·called anyone about my dad coming onto the boat.
24· ·And it's not the captain.·
I have not yet contacted
25· ·the captain.

Page 153 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Does anyone manage the operations ·4· ·of Hong Kong International for you? ·5· · · · A.· ·No. ·6· · · · Q.· ·Does Lamp Capital handle the management ·7· ·and the operations of Hong Kong International for ·8· ·you? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 10· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I'm going to mark as Exhibit 5 12· · · · a document Bates-stamped PN000107 through 117. 13· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 5 was received and marked 14· · · · for identification, as of this date.) 15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Five? 16· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Five. 17· ·BY MR. LUFT: 18· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, this is a document titled 19· ·"Management and Operations Agreement."· It lists 20· ·Hong Kong International Investment Funds USA as the 21· ·company and Lamp Capital LLC as the service 22· ·provider. 23· · · · · · ·Do you see that? 24· · · · A.· ·Just one moment.· Which page is it on? 25· · · · Q.· ·The first page, it's just at the top.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 154

·2· · · · A.· ·Could you repeat his question just now?
·3· · · · Q.· ·I'm just -- we can move on.·
I was just
·4· ·noting what it says on the top.
·5· · · · A.· ·Okay.·　I see it.
·6· · · · Q.· ·Do you see on page ending in
·7· ·Bates-stamp 113 there is a signature above
·8· ·"Name: Mei Guo, Title: Member"?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
10· · · · Q.· ·Is that your signature?
11· · · · A.· ·It looks like my signature.
12· · · · Q.· ·You see on the prior page is a signature
13· ·of a man named Daniel Podhaskie?
14· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
15· · · · Q.· ·If you turn to the first page, it says:
16· · · · · · · · · "Service provider shall provide
17· · · · · · ·management and operational support
18· · · · · · ·services to the company."
19· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
20· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall entering into this agreement
21· ·with Lamp Capital?
22· · · · A.· ·Can I ask which year this is from?
23· · · · Q.· ·It looks as though, by my reading, it says
24· ·it was signed on May 7, 2021.·
That's on -- I'm
25· ·looking at Bates stamp 111.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 155

·2· · · · · · ·Does that refresh your recollection?
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes, I see it.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall entering into this
·5· ·transaction between Lamp Capital and Hong Kong
·6· ·International?
·7· · · · A.· ·I recall.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Prior to this agreement, was there a prior
·9· ·management agreement with Lamp Capital?
10· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
11· · · · Q.· ·Prior to this agreement was there a prior
12· ·management agreement with Golden Spring?
13· · · · A.· ·I don't recall either.
14· · · · Q.· ·Who negotiated this agreement on behalf of
15· ·Hong Kong International?
16· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall without -- sitting here
18· ·today, without rereading the document, do you recall
19· ·what any of the terms of this agreement are?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
21· · · · Q.· ·Is this agreement still in effect between
22· ·Lamp Capital and Hong Kong International with regard
23· ·to managing and operating Hong Kong International
24· ·and the Lady May?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

Page 156 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · Q.· ·At the hearing before Justice Ostrager you ·3· ·testified that the annual costs related to the ·4· ·Lady May were approximately 2 to \$3 million. ·5· · · · · · ·Is that number still accurate? ·6· · · · A.· ·It is accurate, but I think perhaps this ·7· ·number was higher last year because we did a lot of ·8· ·maintenance. ·9· · · · Q.· ·Under this agreement, under point (d), it 10· ·says that Lamp Capital is responsible for 11· ·commencing, defending, control all legal actions, 12· ·arbitrations, investigations, and proceedings that 13· ·arise due to events occurring in connection with the 14· ·business of the company, which is Hong Kong 15· ·International, during the term of this agreement. 16· · · · · · ·Is Lamp Capital in control of this legal 17· ·action that you've brought? 18· · · · A.· ·Just one moment.· Where should I look at 19· ·(d)? 20· · · · Q.· ·Under 2(d).· Under Management Services, 21· ·(d). 22· · · · A.· ·I don't quite understand what this 23· ·question means. 24· · · · Q.· ·I'll say it again. 25· · · · · · ·Under the terms of this agreement, it says

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 157

·2· ·that Lamp Capital will control all legal actions
·3· ·relating to the business of Hong Kong International.
·4· · · · · · ·My question is:·
Does Lamp Capital control
·5· ·this litigation that you have brought --
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·-- on behalf of Hong Kong International?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
10· · · · A.· ·I'm sorry.·
I'm not an attorney, so I
11· ·don't know how to answer your question.·
I don't
12· ·quite understand.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·Who pays the legal fees in connection with
15· ·this litigation?
16· · · · A.· ·So like what we're doing today?
17· · · · Q.· ·Like everything, about filing the
18· ·complaint, writing your pleadings, being here today,
19· ·everything in connection with this litigation that
20· ·you've brought.·
Who pays the legal fees?
21· · · · A.· ·So I pay my counsel by myself.·
And then
22· ·for some expenses, they are paid by my brother.
23· · · · Q.· ·Which are the expenses that are paid by
24· ·your brother?
25· · · · A.· ·I want to make the correction that what

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·I'm saying is I pay Lee by myself.·
But for other
·3· ·attorneys, like when the expenses are higher from
·4· ·other law firms, those would be paid by my brother.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Who pays the Zeisler firm that Mr. Romney
·6· ·is at?
·7· · · · A.· ·I paid some and my brother paid some for
·8· ·me.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Who pays Mr. Mitchell?
10· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you pay Mr. Mitchell for the legal
12· ·services he provides to you?
13· · · · A.· ·So you're asking if I would pay by myself?
14· · · · Q.· ·I'm asking you, yes.·
You pay for
15· ·Mr. Mitchell on behalf of his representation of you
16· ·and Hong Kong International?
17· · · · A.· ·I don't recall when would be the last time
18· ·I paid him, but, of course, I've paid him.
19· · · · Q.· ·When you say your brother pays for your
20· ·legal fees, does he pay them directly from his own
21· ·bank account or does he pay through Lamp Capital?
22· · · · A.· ·I don't know.·
I would just forward my
23· ·invoices to him.·
And as to what he does with them,
24· ·I don't know.
25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'd ask for a break when you

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 159

·2· · · · get to a stopping point.·
We've been going for
·3· · · · about an hour and a half.
·4· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Sure.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall what compensation you paid
·7· ·Lamp Capital in exchange for their management
·8· ·services?
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
10· · · · Q.· ·Do you ever use the Lady May -- is the
11· ·Lady May ever rented out for charter services?
12· · · · A.· ·Never.
13· · · · Q.· ·Would you ever consider such a thing?
14· · · · A.· ·Never.
15· · · · Q.· ·Do you know why, under the terms of this
16· ·agreement with Lamp Capital, you agreed to pay them
17· ·the money from charter services for the Lady May?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Misstates the contract.
19· · · · A.· ·Where is it?·
Can I take a look?
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Sure.·
Under 7, "Compensation":
22· · · · · · · · · "Additionally, service provider" --
23· · · · · · ·Lamp Capital -- "shall be paid directly
24· · · · · · ·for any and all charter services revenue
25· · · · · · ·generated by Lady May and/or Lady May II."

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · A.· ·My understanding of this is that it would
·3· ·have to be approved by me.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
And you're saying you would never
·5· ·approve it?
·6· · · · A.· ·Right.·
I will never rent my boat out.
·7· · · · Q.· ·When this agreement was being entered into
·8· ·and that was the compensation being offered for the
·9· ·management services, was Lamp Capital informed that
10· ·they would never receive any revenue under this
11· ·provision?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
13· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.·
That would be a
14· ·conversation between the attorneys.·
I don't know.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·If you look under 3, "Obligations of the
17· ·Company," (b), which is on the second page?
18· · · · A.· ·(Witness complies.)
19· · · · Q.· ·Second page.
20· · · · · · ·Do you see the first line of it says "The
21· ·Company" -- and that refers to Hong Kong
22· ·International, correct?
23· · · · A.· ·Yes.
24· · · · Q.· ·-- "will promptly provide all requested
25· ·documentation relating to its ownership."

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 161

·2· · · · · · ·Do you see that?
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·4· · · · Q.· ·And the ownership of Hong Kong
·5· ·International is you; is that correct?
·6· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·7· · · · Q.· ·And then it says "and ultimate beneficial
·8· ·owners."
·9· · · · · · ·Do you see that?
10· · · · A.· ·Yes.
11· · · · Q.· ·Who are the ultimate -- if the company is
12· ·Hong Kong International and the ownership is you,
13· ·who is being referenced by "ultimate beneficial
14· ·owners"?
15· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
16· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay.·
You can put this aside
18· · · · for a moment.
19· · · · · · ·Counsel asked for a break, so why don't we
20· · · · do that.
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Sure.·
Thank you.
22· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It is 4:51 p.m.·
We're
23· · · · going off the record.
24· · · · · · ·(Recess.)
25· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It's 5:17 p.m.·
We are

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 162

·2· · · · back on the record.
·3· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·4· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I want to ask you a few questions
·5· ·about the Lady May, if I may.
·6· · · · A.· ·Okay.
·7· · · · Q.· ·When the Lady May has set sail for the
·8· ·south in the winter, do you ever use it?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes, sometimes in Florida.
10· · · · Q.· ·Does your father ever use it when it's in
11· ·Florida?
12· · · · A.· ·Yes.
13· · · · Q.· ·How often does he use it in Florida?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·When the Lady May went south in 2020, did
16· ·you use the boat when it was in Florida?
17· · · · A.· ·Let me think about it.·
I don't remember.
18· · · · Q.· ·Prior to going south in 2020, was the
19· ·Lady May kept in Florida during the winter?
20· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
21· · · · A.· ·I just want to double-check.
22· · · · · · ·So it's about where the boat was in the
23· ·winter of 2020, right?
24· ·BY MR. LUFT:
25· · · · Q.· ·Before -- the winter of 2020 I'll ask

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·about in a minute.·
Prior to that, in prior winters.
·3· · · · A.· ·What about in prior winters?
·4· · · · Q.· ·Was it kept in Florida during the winter?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Can I just clarify?·
Are we
·6· · · · talking about winter '20 into '21, or '19 into
·7· · · · '20?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No.·
Like I said, prior to
·9· · · · 2020.
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You said winter 2020.
11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Prior to that time.
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm not trying to be
13· · · · confusing.
14· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I know you're not.·
You're just
15· · · · being interrupting.
16· · · · · · ·It's prior to the winter of 2020.·
Which
17· · · · winter would that be?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Asking '19 to '20 or '20 to
19· · · · '21?
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Oh, my God.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you understand that -- why don't
23· ·we just make this simple so there's no issue.
24· · · · · · ·In late fall 2020, for the winter, for the
25· ·upcoming winter, the Lady May sailed south, correct?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
In the winters prior to that
·4· ·winter, where was the Lady May kept?
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know about during the winters
·6· ·before 2017.·
But for 2017, '18, and '19, it would
·7· ·be in Florida during the fall.·
And when it's
·8· ·colder, it would go to the Bahamas.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
In the fall of 2020, someone from
10· ·Golden Spring contacted you to let you know that it
11· ·was time to move the boat south, correct?
12· · · · A.· ·Yes.
13· · · · Q.· ·Who was that person at Golden Spring?
14· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
15· · · · Q.· ·And after that call, Golden Spring
16· ·contacted the captain and told him to move the boat
17· ·south, correct?
18· · · · A.· ·Yes.
19· · · · Q.· ·And then it was in the captain's
20· ·discretion what day to actually set sail, correct?
21· · · · A.· ·Yes, so depending on the weather.
22· · · · Q.· ·So when you state that you are solely
23· ·responsible for directing the Lady May's movements,
24· ·I want to be clear.
25· · · · · · ·During the summer, when the boat is in the

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·northeast and your father is on board and you are
·3· ·not, he gets to dictate where the boat goes,
·4· ·correct?

·5· · · · A.· ·So specifically do you mean that when my
·6· ·dad is on board, can he control the boat?
·7· · · · Q.· ·I mean when your dad is on board and you
·8· ·are not, he gets to decide where the boat goes,
·9· ·correct, in the northeast?
10· · · · A.· ·The northeast refers to New York, right?
11· · · · Q.· ·New York, Nantucket, Bar Harbor, the same
12· ·places we talked about this morning when the Court
13· ·asked Captain Heaslop those questions.
14· · · · A.· ·Generally he would tell me about it first.
15· · · · Q.· ·And in the south, when you're not on the
16· ·boat, which is -- that's the majority of the time in
17· ·the winter, correct?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
19· · · · A.· ·"The south" refers to Florida?
20· ·BY MR. LUFT:
21· · · · Q.· ·Florida, the Bahamas.
22· · · · A.· ·When it's in Florida, I am there most of
23· ·the time.·
When it's in the Bahamas, I'm not there
24· ·because I can't leave the country.
25· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
So when the Lady May is docked in

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 166

·2· ·Florida, that's where you're residing most of the
·3· ·time?
·4· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you mentioned that on May 28,
·6· ·2021, you had a number of NDAs executed, correct,
·7· ·with the crew, the current crew of the boat?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
You may just want
·9· · · · to explain what an NDA is.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·You can answer, Ms. Guo.
12· · · · A.· ·I have an NDA with every single one of my
13· ·crew.
14· · · · Q.· ·Have you produced all of those documents?
15· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you have any NDAs with any crew member
17· ·prior to May 28, 2021?
18· · · · A.· ·I think so.
19· · · · Q.· ·I'll represent to you that your counsel
20· ·has not produced any such documents.
21· · · · · · ·Do you know if any such NDAs exist and, if
22· ·so, where?
23· · · · A.· ·You could ask my management company.
24· · · · Q.· ·Who is that?
25· · · · A.· ·Yachtzoo.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 167

·2· · · · · · ·Oh, sorry.·
It's not just this one
·3· ·management company.·
There are many.
·4· · · · Q.· ·What are the other management companies
·5· ·for the yacht?
·6· · · · A.· ·There's been Moran, M-O-R-A-N, Yachtzoo,
·7· ·and Bergers.·
And in between, we switched back to
·8· ·Yachtzoo.·
I think there are three of them.
·9· · · · Q.· ·And Hong Kong International doesn't keep
10· ·copies of any of those agreements other than the
11· ·ones from May 28, 2021?
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
13· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·Do you have a copy of the NDA the current
16· ·captain signed, an NDA agreement?
17· · · · A.· ·I think I do.
18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Counsel, again, no such
19· · · · document has been produced to us.·
We'd ask
20· · · · that it be produced if it exists.
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·How about Mr. -- Captain Ivanov?·
We've
23· ·received no copy of any NDA agreement with him.
24· · · · · · ·Did you ever sign an agreement with him?
25· · · · A.· ·I just wanted to double-check.·
The first

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·name of this captain is Lloyd; is that correct?
·3· ·Because I never remember their family names.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Not based on what he testified to at
·5· ·court.
·6· · · · A.· ·Is it Momchil?
·7· · · · Q.· ·Momchil Ivanov.
·8· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·9· · · · Q.· ·You also produced a staffing agreement
10· ·with Phoenix Crew Ltd.
11· · · · · · ·Do you recall that?
12· · · · A.· ·Yes.
13· · · · Q.· ·Other than the May 28, 2021, NDAs with
14· ·that current crew and the September 1, 2021,
15· ·staffing agreement with Phoenix Crew Ltd., and the
16· ·agreement between Hong Kong International and
17· ·Lamp Capital, we received no other documents bearing
18· ·your signature on behalf of Hong Kong International.
19· · · · · · ·Are you aware if any other such document
20· ·exists?
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
22· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·And to be clear, other than the NDAs with
25· ·the crew as of May 28, 2021, the Phoenix Crew Ltd.

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Page 169 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·document, and the agreement between Hong Kong ·3· ·International and Lamp Capital, which we looked at ·4· ·as Exhibit 4, are you aware of any document that you ·5· ·executed on behalf of Hong Kong International? ·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. ·7· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure. ·8· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·9· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Do you recall when the Lady May 10· ·sailed south in 2020? 11· · · · A.· ·October. 12· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall when in October? 13· · · · A.· ·I don't recall. 14· · · · Q.· ·Do you have any better recollection than 15· ·sometime in October? 16· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I'm going to mark as Exhibit 6, 18· · · · Mei Guo Deposition Exhibit 6, a copy of 19· · · · Justice Ostrager's Decision and Order from 20· · · · October 15, 2020. 21· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 6 was received and marked for 22· ·identification, as of this date.) 23· ·BY MR. LUFT: 24· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, while we wait on that, how long 25· ·does it take to sail the Lady May from New York to

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 170

·2· ·Florida?
·3· · · · A.· ·It entirely depends on the weather.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Approximately?
·5· · · · A.· ·As I remember, there was once when the
·6· ·weather conditions were really poor, and it took
·7· ·them maybe two weeks.
·8· · · · Q.· ·And if the conditions are good?
·9· · · · A.· ·That, I don't know.
10· · · · Q.· ·Do you recognize this document, Ms. Guo?
11· · · · A.· ·Just one moment.·
I'll take a look.
12· · · · · · ·I don't recall.
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall either seeing this order or
14· ·being told by counsel that Justice Ostrager had
15· ·ordered that Mr. Kwok and/or the registered owners
16· ·of the residence at the Sherry-Netherland and the
17· ·yacht the Lady May are restrained from making or
18· ·closing any sale, assignment, transfer, or
19· ·interference with those assets?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't recall ever seeing this document.
21· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Hong Kong International was the
22· ·registered owner of the Lady May on October 15,
23· ·2020, correct?
24· · · · A.· ·You are referring to Hong Kong
25· ·International USA, correct?

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 171

·2· · · · Q.· ·Yes, ma'am.
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Did your counsel tell you that as of
·5· ·October 15, 2020, there was a restraining order
·6· ·applying to you with regard to the Lady May and any
·7· ·interference with the asset?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.·
We haven't
·9· · · · established it, Counsel.
10· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
In fact, I have.
11· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
No, you haven't.·
And I'm
12· · · · talking about October 15, 2020.
13· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
And we've established that
14· · · · Mr. Mitchell was her counsel at that time,
15· · · · correct?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
No, you didn't.
17· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Oh, my God.
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You can ask her.
19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I've asked her.·
It's in the
20· · · · record.
21· · · · · · ·Mr. Vartan, once again, you're amazing in
22· · · · your creativity of how to waste time.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, Mr. Mitchell was your counsel in
25· ·October of 2020, correct?

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.·
I can't remember those
·3· ·clearly.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you believe you had no counsel at that
·5· ·time?
·6· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Did your father or anyone else involved in
·8· ·that litigation inform you that you are subject to a
·9· ·Court order impacting your use of the Lady May?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
11· · · · A.· ·No.
12· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'm going to mark as Mei Guo
13· · · · Exhibit 7 another Decision and Order from
14· · · · Justice Ostrager, this one dated March 16,
15· · · · 2021.
16· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 7 was received and marked for
17· ·identification, as of this date.)
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, on or after March 17, 2021, do
20· ·you recall, were you informed that there was a
21· ·contempt order stating that for every day the yacht
22· ·is outside the jurisdiction of this Court after
23· ·May 15, 2021, Defendant Kwok will be fined \$500,000?
24· · · · A.· ·I know about that.
25· · · · Q.· ·And you knew about -- when did you learn

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 173

·2· ·of that?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·And did you learn about the next line
·5· ·where the Court also ordered that the other
·6· ·restraints related to the ownership and control of
·7· ·the yacht remain in place?
·8· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
·9· · · · Q.· ·In your affidavit you said you were made
10· ·aware of the Court's order by your counsel, correct?
11· · · · A.· ·Yes.
12· · · · Q.· ·Who was that counsel?
13· · · · A.· ·Lee.
14· · · · Q.· ·Mr. Vartan.
15· · · · · · ·You go on to say:
16· · · · · · · · · "I did not want the boat to travel to
17· · · · · · ·New York, and, after consulting with
18· · · · · · ·counsel, directed instead that it proceed
19· · · · · · ·to Europe as had been long planned at
20· · · · · · ·significant expense."
21· · · · · · ·Who is the counsel you consulted with with
22· ·regard to directing the boat to proceed to Europe?
23· · · · A.· ·Lee.
24· · · · Q.· ·You're referring to Mr. Vartan again, who
25· ·is the counsel that directed -- gave you the advice

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·with regard to proceeding to Europe despite being
·3· ·aware of the Court's order to return the boat to
·4· ·New York?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·6· · · · A.· ·At that time he was my counsel.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·Is he the counsel who gave you the advice?
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· · · · Q.· ·So to be clear, you were aware that if the
11· ·Lady May was not returned to New York by May 15,
12· ·2021, your father would incur fines of \$500,000 a
13· ·day, but in response you consulted with counsel and
14· ·instead directed the Lady May to proceed to Europe;
15· ·is that correct?
16· · · · A.· ·Yes.
17· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall when the Lady May's repairs
18· ·in the winter -- the winter months, January,
19· ·February, March, whenever they may have been -- of
20· ·2021 were completed?
21· · · · A.· ·I don't recall the details.
22· · · · Q.· ·What's your best recollection of when
23· ·those repairs were completed?
24· · · · A.· ·2021.·
I really don't remember.
25· · · · Q.· ·But as you state in 15, it was after those

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·repairs were completed that your brother asked if he
·3· ·could use the Lady May in Europe, correct?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Looking at Guo 1,
·5· · · · paragraph 15?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'm just asking her.
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You said 15.·
Again, I want
·8· · · · her to be aware of where you're reading from.
·9· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay, Mr. Vartan.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·Go ahead, Ms. Guo.
12· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Look at Guo 1, paragraph 15.
13· · · · A.· ·Just one moment.
14· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
It's your affidavit.
15· · · · · · ·We are just once again wasting time on the
16· · · · record because your counsel wants to show you
17· · · · documents.
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I would just refer you to
19· · · · your question.·
You said --
20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Mr. Vartan, I was helping her
21· · · · to give her a placing.
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
But as you stated --
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
This is her testimony.
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Right, but you said "as you
25· · · · stated in 15," so it would only be fair that

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Page 176 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · she have access to the document. ·3· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·4· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, you told me Mr. Vartan drafted ·5· ·your affidavit.· He seems very concerned that you're ·6· ·not familiar with the facts in it. ·7· · · · · · ·Did you review this affidavit before you ·8· ·signed it? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· You don't have to answer 10· · · · that. 11· ·BY MR. LUFT: 12· · · · Q.· ·Yes, you do. 13· · · · A.· ·Yes, of course I reviewed it.· It's just 14· ·that my counsel knows that I have a bad memory. 15· · · · Q.· ·Now that you have it in front of you, do 16· ·you recall that you gave a sworn statement that: 17· · · · · · · · · "The Lady May underwent needed 18· · · · · · ·inspections and maintenance, and when 19· · · · · · ·completed my brother, who resides in 20· · · · · · ·Europe, asked if he could have access to 21· · · · · · ·the yacht"? 22· · · · A.· ·Yes, correct. 23· · · · Q.· ·As we discussed, you are aware that the 24· ·hearing transcript that we have been looking at from 25· ·February 2, 2022, was based on the direction from

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 177

·2· ·the appellate division to conduct an evidentiary
·3· ·hearing to resolve the dispute as to ownership and
·4· ·control of the Lady May, correct?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·6· · · · A.· ·I am aware.
·7· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·8· · · · Q.· ·You've said that you take the Lady May to
·9· ·Florida and the Bahamas in the winter, correct?
10· · · · A.· ·Yes.
11· · · · Q.· ·Do you ever take it to the Cayman Islands
12· ·for repairs or registration?
13· · · · A.· ·Where is the Cayman Islands?
14· · · · Q.· ·Do you ever take it to the British Virgin
15· ·Islands for repairs or registration?
16· · · · A.· ·Where are those islands?
17· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever make any communications with
18· ·anyone at BakerHostetler in connection with the PAX
19· ·litigation against your father?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
21· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, why did you consent to allow the
22· ·Lady May to return to the United States from Europe?
23· · · · A.· ·Because if the boat was still not
24· ·returning, it seemed like my dad would have a threat
25· ·to his life.·
And it seems like the boat was used as

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 178

·2· ·a tool to keep my dad's security.
·3· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever think to do it sooner than
·4· ·before he had incurred \$130 million in fines?
·5· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection, argumentative.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Well, I'm just asking.
·8· · · · A.· ·No.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that the Lady May was
10· ·offered to be distributed or to be sold and its
11· ·value distributed to creditors of your father's
12· ·estate as part of a plan he proposed to the
13· ·bankruptcy court?
14· · · · A.· ·Yes.·
I've heard about it from my counsel.
15· · · · Q.· ·Were you consulted prior to the Lady May
16· ·being offered up to pay for your father's creditors?
17· · · · A.· ·What do you remember -- or, sorry, what do
18· ·you mean?·
Could you ask that again?
19· · · · Q.· ·Prior to the Lady May being included in
20· ·your father's proposed bankruptcy plan as an asset
21· ·whose value could be distributed to the creditors,
22· ·did anyone consult with you to see if you agreed
23· ·that you would hand over the Lady May and allow it
24· ·to be used to pay off your father's creditors?
25· · · · A.· ·Yes.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 179

·2· · · · Q.· ·Who spoke to you about it?
·3· · · · A.· ·My counsel.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Who was that?
·5· · · · A.· ·I can't remember that clearly.
·6· · · · Q.· ·This would have just been this past
·7· ·spring.·
Who was your counsel in connection with
·8· ·your father's bankruptcy this past spring?
·9· · · · A.· ·I really can't remember.
10· · · · Q.· ·Mr. Vartan was not your bankruptcy
11· ·counsel, correct?
12· · · · A.· ·He's my counsel.
13· · · · Q.· ·But he wasn't your counsel for bankruptcy
14· ·purposes in April of 2022, correct?
15· · · · A.· ·That's correct.·
He wasn't.
16· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall who was your counsel that
17· ·spoke to you about the possibility of including the
18· ·Lady May as an asset for your father to distribute
19· ·to his creditors?
20· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
21· · · · Q.· ·Did your father ever speak to you about
22· ·using the Lady May to pay off his creditors?
23· · · · A.· ·No.
24· · · · Q.· ·Did your mother ever speak to you about
25· ·using the Lady May to pay off your father's

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·creditors?
·3· · · · A.· ·No.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Did anyone ever -- from the firm of
·5· ·Brown Rudnick ever speak to you with regard to using
·6· ·the Lady May to pay off Mr. Kwok's creditors?
·7· · · · A.· ·Could you repeat the name of the firm?
·8· · · · Q.· ·Brown Rudnick.
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
10· · · · Q.· ·Would you allow the Lady May to be used
11· ·today to pay off your father's creditors as part of
12· ·the plan?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
14· · · · A.· ·What would be the difference between today
15· ·and when I gave consent previously?·
I don't quite
16· ·understand your question.
17· ·BY MR. LUFT:
18· · · · Q.· ·It's not meant to be a riddle, Ms. Guo.
19· ·I'm asking you because I have to ask in stages.
I
20· ·asked then.
21· · · · · · ·So I'm asking you today, would you consent
22· ·to the Lady May being used as an asset to pay off
23· ·your father's creditors as part of a plan, a
24· ·Chapter 11 plan?
25· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.

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Page 181 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · A.· ·For my dad's security, I do agree. ·3· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·4· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I think I asked you earlier if ·5· ·you ever attended any of the bankruptcy court ·6· ·hearings. ·7· · · · · · ·Do you recall that? ·8· · · · A.· ·Yes. ·9· · · · Q.· ·And I believe you told me you have not 10· ·attended any of those hearings, correct? 11· · · · A.· ·Yes. 12· · · · Q.· ·And does that include -- and when I say 13· ·that, I mean both virtual hearings and in-person 14· ·hearings? 15· · · · A.· ·Yes. 16· · · · Q.· ·So did you ever -- have you ever listened 17· ·in to any of the bankruptcy court hearings in your 18· ·father's bankruptcy court case? 19· · · · A.· ·No. 20· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Why don't we take a short 21· · · · break. 22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Sure. 23· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:· It is 6:06 p.m.· We're 24· · · · going off the record. 25· · · · · · ·(Recess.)

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
Time is 6:28 p.m.·
We
·3· · · · are back on the record.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, I want to ask you about -- we
·6· ·talked about the boat returning to the
·7· ·United States.
·8· · · · · · ·I want to now ask you about -- there was a
·9· ·hearing in the bankruptcy court on April 13 in which
10· ·an issue with regard to posting a bond equal to the
11· ·value of the boat, approximately \$37 million, came
12· ·up.
13· · · · · · ·Are you familiar with that hearing?
14· · · · A.· ·Yes.
15· · · · Q.· ·When did you first hear about the
16· ·possibility of Hong Kong International having to
17· ·post the bond?
18· · · · A.· ·That would be on that same day.
19· · · · Q.· ·How did you hear about it?
20· · · · A.· ·I received a phone call from my counsel.
21· · · · Q.· ·Who was that counsel?
22· · · · A.· ·Aaron Mitchell.
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Aaron Mitchell?·
Is that what
24· · · · she said?
25· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
Aaron Mitchell.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·You spoke to Mr. Mitchell about this
·4· ·issue?
·5· · · · A.· ·What issues are you referring to, going to
·6· ·the Court?·
No, I mean about that hearing?
·7· · · · Q.· ·Let me take a step back.
·8· · · · · · ·At the time Mr. Mitchell was your counsel
·9· ·and he was also your father's counsel, correct?
10· · · · A.· ·Yes.
11· · · · Q.· ·+ What did Mr. Mitchell tell you on that
12· ·phone call?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
And I would just caution, now
14· · · · this is getting into conversations that you're
15· · · · having with your attorney.
16· · · · · · ·So I'm assuming you're not looking for
17· · · · privileged information.
18· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No, I am, because that
19· · · · privilege has been waived.·
It's owned by the
20· · · · trustee, and the Court has ruled that any joint
21· · · · defense communications and common interest
22· · · · communications between Mr. Kwok's counsel and
23· · · · anyone else's are -- belongs to the trustee.
24· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
He was acting in her -- in
25· · · · the capacity as her counsel.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 184

·2· · · · MR. LUFT:·
And Mr. Kwok's counsel.
·3· · · · MR. ROMNEY:·
I've been very quiet
·4· ·throughout this deposition, but I was involved
·5· ·in that process.
·6· · · · That was a communication between
·7· ·Aaron Mitchell in his capacity as Mei and HK's
·8· ·counsel.·
The debtor was not present for that
·9· ·communication.
10· · · · We are instructing the witness not to
11· ·divulge those communications.
12· · · · MR. LUFT:·
I don't understand the
13· ·objection.·
It doesn't matter if Mr. Kwok is
14· ·present when they're happening.
15· · · · Mr. Mitchell is at a hearing at which he
16· ·is serving as counsel for both Mr. Kwok -- in
17· ·fact, he was -- and I guess also Ms. Guo.·
She
18· ·had other counsel who was her exclusive
19· ·counsel.·
The counsel that she shares with her
20· ·father spoke to her.
21· · · · The court order is very clear that any
22· ·common interest and joint defense
23· ·communications with the defendant are -- belong
24· ·to the trustee, and the trustee is entitled to
25· ·know it.·
So I don't see any basis for which

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 185

·2· ·you guys to object for privilege.
·3· · · · MR. ROMNEY:·
That's not a common interest
·4· ·privileged communication.·
It's an
·5· ·attorney-client privileged communication.
·6· ·You're free to make that argument to a judge.
·7· ·We will make our argument to a judge, and the
·8· ·judge will rule.
·9· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Okay.·
All common interest and
10· ·joint defense communications are
11· ·attorney-client communications.·
You have to
12· ·have an attorney-client communication for it to
13· ·be joint defense and common interest.
14· · · · If you'd like, we can go off the record
15· ·and you could speak to Mr. Mitchell, but I
16· ·don't understand how you're telling me that
17· ·while he's representing Mr. Kwok and speaking
18· ·about an issue relating to him, he is
19· ·somehow -- the part of his brain he was
20· ·speaking with was not joint.
21· · · · MR. ROMNEY:·
That is not the law.
A
22· ·lawyer who represents two clients is not
23· ·engaging in a joint interest privileged
24· ·communication when they're speaking with either
25· ·one of their clients individually.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 186

·2· · · · MR. LUFT:·
About an issue impacting both
·3· ·of them.
·4· · · · MR. ROMNEY:·
We respectfully disagree with
·5· ·your view on it, and a Court will address it if
·6· ·that's what needs to happen.
·7· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Are you directing her not to
·8· ·answer?
·9· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Yes.·
You said you're asking
10· ·for privileged communications.
11· · · · MR. LUFT:·
I'm asking about her
12· ·communications with Mr. Mitchell.·
Mr. Pin^ now
13· ·owns that privilege.
14· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
He does not own her
15· ·privilege.·
She's not the debtor.
16· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Are you aware of what the
17· ·privilege order says in this case?
18· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
I'm not.
19· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Okay.
20· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
She's not the debtor.
21· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Maybe you and I should not be
22· ·talking about this.
23· · · · MR. ROMNEY:·
That's why I spoke for the
24· ·first time on the record today.·
Because I'm
25· ·the human being who negotiated that order on

Page 187 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · behalf of the debtor.· And I'm very familiar ·3· · · · with it. ·4· · · · · · ·And I agree with your characterization of ·5· · · · the order.· I disagree with your ·6· · · · characterization of the communication as a ·7· · · · joint interest privileged communication. ·8· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Okay.· I'm just asking. ·9· · · · · · ·So you're instructing her not to answer? 10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Correct. 11· ·BY MR. LUFT: 12· · · · Q.· ·Are you going to follow your counsel's 13· ·instruction? 14· · · · A.· ·That's right. 15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Okay.· We're going reserve the 16· · · · right to reopen the deposition or keep the 17· · · · deposition open as to that issue. 18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Sure. 19· ·BY MR. LUFT: 20· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Did Mr. Mitchell have any 21· ·communications with you -- 22· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· Well, am I correct that I'm not 23· · · · allowed to ask her about anything Mr. Mitchell 24· · · · discussed with her despite him also being 25· · · · Mr. Kwok's counsel and acting as Mr. Kwok's

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 188

·2· · · · counsel at that hearing?
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
That's correct.
·4· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·5· · · · Q.· ·After you spoke to Mr. Mitchell, what did
·6· ·you do?
·7· · · · A.· ·I made a call.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Who did you call?
·9· · · · A.· ·The first call?
10· · · · Q.· ·Yes.·
Start with the first one.
11· · · · A.· ·Uncle William.
12· · · · Q.· ·Who is Uncle William?
13· · · · A.· ·He's a family friend we've known for many,
14· ·many years.·
I call him "Uncle."
15· · · · Q.· ·And does Uncle William have a last name?
16· · · · A.· ·In Chinese it's Yu, Y-U.
17· · · · Q.· ·And in English, is it pronounced
18· ·William "Je"?
19· · · · A.· ·I think so.
20· · · · Q.· ·And what did you say to Uncle William?
21· · · · A.· ·I told him about the conditions at that
22· ·time, and I said I needed to borrow some money,
23· ·otherwise my dad would face safety risks.
24· · · · Q.· ·What did you tell him were the conditions
25· ·at the time?

Page 189 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · A.· ·Before the boat returned, I needed to ·3· ·borrow money that would be \$37 million.· And once ·4· ·the boat returned, the money would be paid back. ·5· · · · Q.· ·Did you tell him anything else? ·6· · · · · · ·I'm going to ask you, in as much detail as ·7· ·possible, try to recall everything you said to ·8· ·Mr. Je on that phone call and everything he said to ·9· ·you. 10· · · · A.· ·That day, I made this call while feeling 11· ·extremely frightened.· I can't recall many details. 12· ·This is just the information that I recall now. 13· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall anything else about your 14· ·phone call with William Je? 15· · · · A.· ·I recall that he said yes to me. 16· · · · Q.· ·Yes, that he would lend you \$37 million? 17· · · · A.· ·Yes. 18· · · · Q.· ·Did he say anything else? 19· · · · A.· ·He confirmed twice to make sure that the 20· ·money would just be there temporarily, as like in a 21· ·bridging fund.· I said yes.· So he agreed very 22· ·quickly. 23· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall anything else, any other 24· ·terms or details included in the phone call? 25· · · · A.· ·No.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall having any discussion
·3· ·with -- regarding whether the money would have to be
·4· ·used to pay for repairs to the boat?
·5· · · · A.· ·I was in great panic that day.·
So no.
·6· · · · Q.· ·No, you don't recall, or no, you didn't
·7· ·discuss the fact that the money would have to be
·8· ·used to pay for repairs to the Lady May?
·9· · · · A.· ·On that phone call, no.
10· · · · Q.· ·Again, what is the "no" referring to?·
No,
11· ·you don't recall if you said it, or no, you did not
12· ·discuss the repairs?
13· · · · A.· ·I did not discuss the repairs.
14· · · · Q.· ·Did you discuss if there would be interest
15· ·charged for this loan?
16· · · · A.· ·No.
17· · · · Q.· ·Was there anyone on the phone with you
18· ·other than you and Uncle William?
19· · · · A.· ·No.
20· · · · Q.· ·Did you have Mr. Je's number readily
21· ·available?
22· · · · A.· ·No.
23· · · · Q.· ·How did you get Mr. Je's phone number?
24· · · · A.· ·I always had his number.
25· · · · Q.· ·Did you speak to anyone other than Mr. Je

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 191

·2· ·about getting the loan?
·3· · · · A.· ·No.
·4· · · · Q.· ·After you got off -- how long was your
·5· ·phone call with Mr. Je?
·6· · · · A.· ·Probably only five or six minutes.
·7· · · · Q.· ·Is there anything else you recall about
·8· ·that phone call that you have not told me yet?
·9· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
10· · · · Q.· ·After you got off the phone with Mr. Je,
11· ·what did you do next?
12· · · · A.· ·I had a drink.
13· · · · Q.· ·After you finished your drink.
14· · · · · · ·Let me ask:·
Where were you that you had a
15· ·drink?·
That sounds great.·
You have one now.
16· · · · A.· ·It was at my own home.
17· · · · Q.· ·So you were home when you got the phone
18· ·call?
19· · · · · · ·CHECK INTERPRETER:·
Did you say "make" the
20· · · · phone call or "got" the phone call?
21· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I said made the phone call,
22· · · · but -- made the phone call.
23· ·BY MR. LUFT:
24· · · · Q.· ·And after you finished your drink, what
25· ·did you do?

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Page 192 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.· I was really anxious ·3· ·throughout that whole day. ·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall anything else that you did ·5· ·that day after you spoke with Mr. Je on that first ·6· ·phone call? ·7· · · · A.· ·I don't recall. ·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if you called back ·9· ·Mr. Mitchell and told him you got the loan? 10· · · · A.· ·I don't recall. 11· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if you spoke to anyone to 12· ·tell them that you got the loan? 13· · · · A.· ·I don't recall. 14· · · · Q.· ·Do you know how anyone else would know -- 15· ·would anyone other than you and Mr. Je know that you 16· ·got the loan? 17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 18· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 19· ·BY MR. LUFT: 20· · · · Q.· ·Okay.· Did you speak to anyone on this 21· ·topic on April 13 other than that one phone call 22· ·with Mr. Je and the initial phone call from 23· ·Mr. Mitchell before you spoke to Mr. Je? 24· · · · A.· ·I don't remember. 25· · · · Q.· ·Do you remember the next time you spoke to

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·anyone with regard to this topic?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall having any conversations
·5· ·with anyone other than Mr. Je in that phone call
·6· ·we've discussed and the initial phone call you had
·7· ·with Mr. Mitchell leading up to your phone call with
·8· ·Mr. Je with regard to the topic of the \$37 million
·9· ·loan and its terms?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Other than her attorneys?
11· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No.·
My question does not
12· · · · include your question.
13· ·BY MR. LUFT:
14· · · · Q.· ·You can answer.
15· · · · A.· ·I don't remember the exact time, but I did
16· ·speak with my counsel.
17· · · · Q.· ·When did you speak with your counsel?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
19· · · · Q.· ·Who did you speak with?
20· · · · A.· ·I think it might have been the counsel
21· ·from Connecticut, but I can't remember.
22· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever have any conversations with
23· ·Mr. Mitchell again on this topic?
24· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
25· · · · Q.· ·Are you familiar with the terms of the

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 194

·2· ·\$37 million loan?
·3· · · · A.· ·Yes.·
I've read them.
·4· · · · Q.· ·When you spoke to Mr. Je originally, did
·5· ·he tell you what -- which entity was going to make
·6· ·you the loan?
·7· · · · A.· ·No.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall that originally that it
·9· ·was -- the loan was to come from ACA Capital?
10· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
11· · · · Q.· ·Your father has a history of working with
12· ·ACA Capital, correct?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
14· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·Were you involved in negotiating any of
17· ·the terms of the loan agreement?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
19· · · · Q.· ·You don't recall if you were involved in
20· ·any of the negotiations of the loan agreement for
21· ·\$37 million?
22· · · · A.· ·That's correct.·
My counsel did.
23· · · · Q.· ·Did your counsel inform you that
24· ·originally you were not to be -- let me strike that.
25· · · · · · ·Ms. Guo, are you aware that under the

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 195

·2· ·final terms of the agreement you are personally
·3· ·liable for guaranteeing the \$37 million loan?
·4· · · · A.· ·I am aware.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Are you aware that in earlier versions of
·6· ·the agreement, the loan was to be secured by the
·7· ·Lady May and not by you yourself personally?
·8· · · · A.· ·Yes, I remember that.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Why was that change made?
10· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
If that calls for
11· · · · conversations you had with counsel, again, you
12· · · · can't answer that.
13· · · · A.· ·Based on the counsel's advice.
14· ·BY MR. LUFT:
15· · · · Q.· ·+ So counsel advised you to personally
16· ·guarantee the loan?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'll instruct you not to
18· · · · answer.·
Calls for privileged information.
19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I'm just clarifying her answer.
20· · · · I just want to understand what she said.
21· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
You asked her what her
22· · · · counsel advised her.
23· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No.·
She told me "based on
24· · · · advice of counsel."·
I just want to make sure I
25· · · · understand her answer.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Right.·
I'm instructing her
·3· · · · not to answer.
·4· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay.
·5· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·6· · · · Q.· ·You're going to follow your counsel's
·7· ·advice?
·8· · · · A.· ·That's correct.
·9· · · · Q.· ·Who negotiated the interest rate on the
10· ·loan?
11· · · · A.· ·My counsel.
12· · · · Q.· ·You agreed to pay that interest rate,
13· ·3 percent per month?
14· · · · A.· ·Yes, I agreed.
15· · · · Q.· ·And that \$37 million, that's approximately
16· ·\$1.1 million a month, correct?
17· · · · A.· ·Probably.·
I didn't do the calculation.
18· · · · Q.· ·What funds were you going to use to pay
19· ·\$1.1 million per month worth of interest?
20· · · · A.· ·When I agreed to this, I actually didn't
21· ·expect that I would ever need to make the payment
22· ·because I was really confident that the boat would
23· ·be back on time and the money would be back into the
24· ·account.
25· · · · · · ·And ^judgments are great.·
I never

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo
·2· ·expected that I would need to pay the money.
·3· · · · Q.· ·You didn't expect there would be any
·4· ·period of time between when the boat returned to the
·5· ·United States and when the money could be returned
·6· ·to the lender?
·7· · · · A.· ·At that time, I only had several days to
·8· ·borrow the money and sign the document.·
I didn't
·9· ·really think about it that much.
10· · · · Q.· ·What about the money that would be needed
11· ·to repair the boat?·
Where was that going to come
12· ·from?
13· · · · A.· ·The insurance would pay part of it.·
My
14· ·brother would pay part of it for me.
15· · · · Q.· ·Did Mr. Je ever tell you that he was going
16· ·to charge you a million dollars a month to borrow
17· ·the money?
18· · · · A.· ·I don't recall.
19· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever think to see if there was
20· ·anyone who was going to charge you less of a
21· ·usurious loan rate?
22· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
23· · · · A.· ·Could you repeat that question?·
I don't
24· ·understand it.
Page 198 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·3· · · · Q.· ·Sure. ·4· · · · · · ·Did you ever see if anyone would charge ·5· ·you less than 3 percent interest per month to borrow ·6· ·the money? ·7· · · · A.· ·No. ·8· · · · Q.· ·Do you know if anyone else reached out to ·9· ·any other lenders other than Mr. Je to provide the 10· ·money? 11· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 12· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever ask your brother if he would 13· ·lend you the money to pay for the bond in connection 14· ·with your father's bankruptcy? 15· · · · A.· ·No. 16· · · · Q.· ·Did you have to provide any due diligence 17· ·documents to Mr. Je prior to him loaning you 18· ·\$37 million? 19· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection to "due diligence 20· · · · documents."· I don't know if that definition is 21· · · · clear. 22· · · · A.· ·No. 23· ·BY MR. LUFT: 24· · · · Q.· ·And the loan that Mr. Je gave you for 25· ·\$37 million without seeing any due diligence

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo

·2· ·documents is unsecured, correct?
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·4· · · · A.· ·I don't quite understand what is meant by
·5· ·"unsecured."
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Mr. Je didn't receive any security
·8· ·interest in connection with his loan, correct?
·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Same objection.·
I don't know
10· · · · if she knows what "security interest" means.
11· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
The interpreter is not
12· · · · quite sure about security interest, so we were
13· · · · talking about the proper translation of
14· · · · security interest.
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
How do you say "security
16· · · · interest"?
17· · · · · · ·MS. SONG:·
In what context?
18· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I don't know that security
19· · · · interest means a lien.·
If you want to ask
20· · · · about a lien, ask about a lien.
21· · · · · · ·CHECK INTERPRETER:·
Is it like a schedule
22· · · · or guarantee?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Right.·
I would consider a
24· · · · personal guarantee to be a security interest.
25· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
No.·
I'm sure Mr. Zeisler will

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 200

·2· · · · tell you that's not --
·3· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm not a bankruptcy
·4· · · · attorney.
·5· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
That's why I am suggesting you
·6· · · · not jump in.
·7· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I'm giving my non-bankruptcy
·8· · · · perspective.
·9· · · · · · ·MR. ROMNEY:·
A personal guarantee is
10· · · · probably security.·
It's not a security
11· · · · interest.·
A lien is a type of security
12· · · · interest, but it's not the only.
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
I was 50 percent right.·
It's
14· · · · 7:00.
15· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
I don't know if it's
16· · · · 50 percent.
17· · · · · · ·THE INTERPRETER:·
I was explaining the
18· · · · translation of the term to the witness.
19· · · · A.· ·So you're asking me about whether there
20· ·was a security interest; is that correct?
21· ·BY MR. LUFT:
22· · · · Q.· ·Why don't we just -- I'll repeat my
23· ·question.
24· · · · A.· ·Thank you.
25· · · · Q.· ·And the loan that Mr. Je gave you for

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 201

·2· ·\$37 million without seeing any due diligence
·3· ·documents was unsecured, correct?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Same objection.
·5· · · · A.· ·I think for him, the security would be
·6· ·that we were certain and told him that once the boat
·7· ·is back, the money would be back.·
That's the
·8· ·security.
·9· ·BY MR. LUFT:
10· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·
Did you provide any
11· ·know-your-customer documents to Mr. Je in connection
12· ·with the loan?
13· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
14· · · · A.· ·I don't know what that is.
15· ·BY MR. LUFT:
16· · · · Q.· ·Did you read the terms of the loan
17· ·agreement?
18· · · · · · ·Well, who's the loan agreement between --
19· ·with Hong Kong International funds with?
20· · · · A.· ·I did read the terms.·
That's with
21· ·Himalaya Financial Group.·
I don't know about the
22· ·Chinese.
23· · · · Q.· ·What business is Himalaya Financial Group
24· ·in?
25· · · · A.· ·I don't know.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 202

·2· · · · Q.· ·Do you understand that they issued -- do
·3· ·you understand they issue cryptocurrency?
·4· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·5· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
·6· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·7· · · · Q.· ·Did you ever hear of H Coin?
·8· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
·9· · · · A.· ·Yes.
10· ·BY MR. LUFT:
11· · · · Q.· ·And are you aware that Himalaya Financial
12· ·is involved with H Coin?
13· · · · A.· ·I'm not aware.
14· · · · Q.· ·Your father is involved with H Coin,
15· ·correct?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
17· · · · A.· ·I don't know.
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Have you ever heard your father's song,
20· ·"H Coin to the Moon"?
21· · · · A.· ·I'm not sure.
22· · · · Q.· ·Do you want me to show you the video?
23· · · · A.· ·Okay.
24· · · · Q.· ·Okay.·　When the deposition is over, I'll
25· ·show you.·　That's good.

Page 203 ·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo ·2· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· I don't know if we're hanging ·3· · · · around after the deposition, but we can go ·4· · · · ahead. ·5· ·BY MR. LUFT: ·6· · · · Q.· ·In fact, your father has a long history of ·7· ·doing business dealings with Mr. William Je, ·8· ·correct? ·9· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 10· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 11· ·BY MR. LUFT: 12· · · · Q.· ·You know Mr. Je is involved with 13· ·ACA Capital, correct? 14· · · · A.· ·I think, yes, probably. 15· · · · Q.· ·And you know your father is involved with 16· ·ACA Capital, correct? 17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:· Objection. 18· · · · A.· ·I don't know. 19· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:· I'm going to ask the court 20· · · · reporter to mark as Exhibit 8 a copy of the 21· · · · Stipulated Order Compelling HK International 22· · · · Funds Investments Limited to transport and 23· · · · deliver that certain yacht, the Lady May. 24· · · · · · ·(Mei Guo Exhibit 8 was received and marked 25· · · · for identification, as of this date.)

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 204

·2· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·3· · · · Q.· ·Ms. Guo, do you recognize this document?
·4· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·5· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall if you ever read this
·6· ·document?
·7· · · · A.· ·Give me some time.·
I need to read it.
·8· · · · Q.· ·Of course.
·9· · · · A.· ·I have some impression of it.
10· · · · Q.· ·Were you involved in negotiating this
11· ·agreement?
12· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
13· · · · Q.· ·Do you have any personal knowledge with
14· ·regard to the negotiations related to this
15· ·agreement?
16· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
17· · · · A.· ·Personal knowledge, right?
18· ·BY MR. LUFT:
19· · · · Q.· ·Yes.
20· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
21· · · · Q.· ·Who negotiated this agreement on behalf of
22· ·Hong Kong International?
23· · · · A.· ·My counsel.
24· · · · Q.· ·Who is that?
25· · · · A.· ·I think an attorney from Connecticut.

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·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 205

·2· · · · Q.· ·Do you know which one?
·3· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
·4· · · · Q.· ·Do you recall him discussing the terms of
·5· ·the agreement with you while he was negotiating it?
·6· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Just answer that yes or no.
·7· · · · A.· ·Yes.
·8· ·BY MR. LUFT:
·9· · · · Q.· ·How many conversations did he have with
10· ·you while he was negotiating this agreement?
11· · · · A.· ·I don't remember.
12· · · · Q.· ·I asked you earlier today about other
13· ·entities that you owned other than Hong Kong
14· ·International.·　You told me you could not recall the
15· ·names of any of them.
16· · · · · · ·Do you remember that testimony?
17· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Misstates the testimony.
18· · · · A.· ·Yes, I remember.
19· ·BY MR. LUFT:
20· · · · Q.· ·I'll ask you the same thing.
21· · · · · · ·Are there any entities other than
22· ·Hong Kong International that you are a director of?
23· · · · · · ·MR. VARTAN:·
Objection.
24· · · · A.· ·I really don't remember.
25· · · · · · ·MR. LUFT:·
Okay.·
Why don't we take a

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·1· · · · · · · · · · ·M. Guo　Page 206

·2· ·break and see if we're close to done.
·3· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
How much time do we have
·4· ·left?
·5· · · · THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
Do you want to go off
·6· ·record first?
·7· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Please.
·8· · · · THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It's 7:13 p.m.·
We're
·9· ·going off the record.
10· · · · (Recess.)
11· · · · THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It is 7:31 p.m.·
We are
12· ·back on the record.
13· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Ms. Guo, I'm going leave this
14· ·deposition open for the reasons I've stated
15· ·throughout regarding instructions for your
16· ·counsel not to answer non-privileged questions,
17· ·improper privileged questions, objections, and
18· ·documents that are missing and the other
19· ·reasons I've raised.
20· · · · Other than that, I have no further
21· ·questions for you at this time.
22· · · · THE WITNESS:·
Okay.
23· · · · MR. LUFT:·
Thank you, Ms. Guo.
24· · · · THE WITNESS:·
Thank you.
25· · · · MR. VARTAN:·
Thank you.

·1· · · · · · · · · · · · · M. Guo　Page 207

·2· · · · · · ·THE WITNESS:·
Thank you, everyone.
·3· · · · · · ·THE VIDEOGRAPHER:·
It is 7:32 p.m.·
We're
·4· · · · going off the record.
·5
·6· · · · · · ·(Time noted:·
7:32 p.m.)
·7
·8
·9

11· · · · · · · · · · · ·____________________________
12· · · · · · · · · · · ·MEI GUO

14· ·Subscribed and sworn to
15· ·before me this· · ·day
16· ·of· · · · · · 2022.
17· ·_______________________

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of 211

·1　Page 208

·2· · · · · · · · · · ·C O N T E N T S
·3· ·MR. LUFT· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·6
·4
·5· · · · · · · · · · ·E X H I B I T S
·6· · · · · · ·(Retained by the court reporter)
·7· ·DEPOSITION· · · · · EXHIBIT· · · · · · · · · · ·PAGE
·8· ·Exhibit 1· ·Affidavit of Mei Guo· · · · · · · · · 87
·9· ·Exhibit 2· ·2-2-22 Hearing transcript· · · · · · ·92
10· ·Exhibit 3· ·Lady May Certificate of Registry· · ·128
11· ·Exhibit 4· ·Letter dated June 7, 2021· · · · · · 141
12· ·Exhibit 5· ·Management and Operations Agreement·

· · · · · · · · ·dated May 7, 2021
13　· · ·Exhibit 6· ·Decision and Order, October 15, 2020 169
14　· · ·Exhibit 7· ·Decision and Order, March 16, 2021· ·172
15　· · ·Exhibit 8· ·Stipulated Order· · · · · · · · · · ·204

17　· · ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · · 10· · 9
18· ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · · 20· ·15
· · ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · · 25· ·13
19· ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · · 28· ·22
· · ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · · 39· ·19
20· ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · ·116· ·10
· · ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · ·187· ·10
21· ·Instruction not to answer· · · · · · · · ·195· ·17

Page 209 ·1 ·2 ·3· · · · · · · · · · · ·CERTIFICATE ·4 ·5· ·STATE OF NEW YORK· ) ·6· · · · · · · · · · · :· ·ss ·7· · · · · · ·I, Angela M. Shaw-Crockett, a Certified Court ·8· ·Reporter, Registered Merit Reporter and Notary Public within ·9· ·and for the States of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, 10· ·do hereby certify: 11· · · · · · ·That MEI GUO, the witness whose deposition is 12· ·herein before set forth, was duly sworn by me and that such 13· ·deposition is a true record of the testimony given by such 14· ·witness. 15· · · · · · ·I further certify that I am not related to any of 16· ·the parties to this action by blood or marriage and that I 17· ·am in no way interested in the outcome of this matter. 18· · · · · · ·In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand 19· ·this 23rd day of January, 2023. 20 21· · · · · · ·---------------------------------------- · · · · · · · ·ANGELA M. SHAW-CROCKETT, CCR, CRR, RMR, CSR 22· · · · · · ·LICENSE NO. XI00218400 23 24 25

Deposition Date:

Deponent:

___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
___ __________· · __________· ·____________________
· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · Signature of Deponent