A federal jury in Santa Ana, California, has convicted Michelle Bisnoff, the former chief executive of a company that marketed a "smart ring" designed for financial transactions, on multiple fraud charges. The conviction followed a trial based on a 22-count indictment. Prosecutors said Bisnoff was initially hired in March 2016 to manage marketing and branding for John McLear, the inventor of a wearable ring that could store credit card information. However, after she was dismissed in October 2016, Bisnoff allegedly devised a plan to claim ownership of the invention and start her own company, Esos Rings. Bisnoff officially formed Esos Rings on February 1, 2017, and falsely claimed ownership of the invention by forging the signature of the person who had originally hired her. She then misled potential investors, securing over $2 million in funding for the company. Prosecutors noted that while Bisnoff did make payments to some investors, these were funded by money taken from other investors, not from actual capital investments from companies like Virgin Mobile or Sprint, despite her false claims that these telecom firms would invest in her startup. She also fabricated business relationships with Apple and Roc Nation. As expected investments failed to materialize, Bisnoff offered various excuses for the delays. Prosecutors said she escalated her actions in early August 2022, attempting to embezzle funds from a new employer where she was working as an executive assistant, intending to use the money to repay investors who were threatening legal action. When that attempt failed, she issued checks to three investors, all of which bounced. An FBI forensic accounting analyst determined that nearly all the money Bisnoff repaid to investors in Esos Rings came from Ponzi scheme payments or loans. Court documents also revealed that investor funds were used for Bisnoff’s personal expenses, including rent for a luxury home in Pacific Palisades, California, costing between $13,500 and $16,409 per month. In March 2020, she submitted false information to obtain a $150,000 loan under the federal COVID-19 relief program, but she made only a few payments before the debt was eventually written off for $165,813.