JUST IN: Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson Arrested in Fraud Case

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Carlos Watson, the CEO of Ozy Media, was arrested and charged after his co-founder plead guilty to fraud, the Wall Street Journal reported first Thursday.

The Journal reported Watson was arrested in New York after Ozy COO and co-founder Samir Rao plead guilty to fraud charges. Watson will be arraigned “on charges of conspiring to commit securities fraud and conspiring to commit wire fraud,” per the Journal.

According to the New York Times, prosecutors have charged Watson:

Prosecutors said in a court document dated Wednesday that Mr. Watson had “engaged in a scheme to defraud Ozy’s potential investors, potential acquirers, lenders and potential lenders” by misrepresenting the company’s audience numbers and financial results. The court filing about Mr. Watson’s arrest was dated Thursday.

The Ozy debacle was first reported back in 2021 by then-New York Times media columnist Ben Smith, whose bombshell story on potential fraud at the media company quickly led to its shuttering.

Watson announced shortly afterwards that the company would be re-launching — despite the many reports on its questionable and potentially illegal business practices.

This story is breaking and will be updated.