Seems to conclude that there nothing new to see here, noting in the Significance section:
The facts of Choi are not particularly complex, and are far from groundbreaking. The indictment contains a handful of wire fraud counts for conduct that, if proven, amounts to simple deception at a small Silicon Valley company. As one commentator has noted, much of the conduct is par for the course in the Valley. For employees seeking to earn their stripes and fortune at a startup, experiences similar to those at WrkRiot are practically a “rite of passage.”
They don't link or footnote who the commenter is or who viewed this as a rite of passage. They conclude:
"Ultimately, the government’s success if Choi is litigated, and the length of any resulting sentence, will depend in part on whether a jury and judge accept the notion that Choi’s conduct amounts to something more than conventional Silicon Valley antics, that is, this was more than an unfortunate rite of passage for WrkRiot employees. Regardless of the result, the Choi indictment demonstrates that on suitable facts, DOJ will delve into the internal affairs of a startup despite only modest losses. Founders and their advisers should keep WrkRiot in mind, balancing zeal for product and capital and the need to survive with the need for both investor-facing and internal restraint."
"Isaac Choi, the founder of a shuttered Santa Clara startup, faces up to 20 years in prison and a potential $250,000 fine after pleading guilty to defrauding his employees.
The story of 36-year-old Choi surfaced after former employee Penny Kim wrote a Medium post titled “I Got Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup” in August 2016.
Federal prosecutors said that Choi, who went by at least four different names, falsified his educational and professional history and personal wealth, and scammed at least a dozen employees.
His online job search company, WrkRiot, was known as 1.For.One when it was founded in 2015."
Seems to conclude that there nothing new to see here, noting in the Significance section:
The facts of Choi are not particularly complex, and are far from groundbreaking. The indictment contains a handful of wire fraud counts for conduct that, if proven, amounts to simple deception at a small Silicon Valley company. As one commentator has noted, much of the conduct is par for the course in the Valley. For employees seeking to earn their stripes and fortune at a startup, experiences similar to those at WrkRiot are practically a “rite of passage.”
They don't link or footnote who the commenter is or who viewed this as a rite of passage. They conclude:
"Ultimately, the government’s success if Choi is litigated, and the length of any resulting sentence, will depend in part on whether a jury and judge accept the notion that Choi’s conduct amounts to something more than conventional Silicon Valley antics, that is, this was more than an unfortunate rite of passage for WrkRiot employees. Regardless of the result, the Choi indictment demonstrates that on suitable facts, DOJ will delve into the internal affairs of a startup despite only modest losses. Founders and their advisers should keep WrkRiot in mind, balancing zeal for product and capital and the need to survive with the need for both investor-facing and internal restraint."