Guy Suing for 84% of Facebook Charged With Fraud

Paul Ceglia accused of faking evidence, falsifying contract
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 27, 2012 2:09 PM CST
Guy Suing for 84% of Facebook Charged With Fraud
This Friday, May 18, 2012, file photo shows Facebook's headquarters behind flowers in Menlo Park, Calif.   (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma,File)

Facebook cried fraud last year over the guy claiming he was entitled to 84% of the company—and Facebook might have been right. Paul Ceglia, who sued the company and Mark Zuckerberg in 2010, has now been indicted on fraud charges for allegedly faking evidence, Mashable reports. Ceglia is accused of creating a false contract "in which Zuckerberg agreed to provide Ceglia with at least a 50% interest in Facebook" in return for coding work Ceglia did in 2003.

Ceglia is also charged with creating fake emails and destroying evidence; each charge carries a potential prison sentence of up to 20 years. Facebook's appeal to have the lawsuit against the company tossed is pending, and the latest of Ceglia's attorneys is seeking the permission of a federal judge to withdraw from the case, reports AP. (More Paul Ceglia stories.)

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