Ozy’s Rao Tells Jury How He Tried to Fool Goldman on Call (1)

Ozy Media Inc.’s former chief operating officer Samir Rao told a federal jury how he used a voice-altering app to impersonate a YouTube executive on a call with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in a desperate bid to win a $35 million investment.

Rao, who’s testifying as part of a plea agreement, said he conspired with Ozy Media co-founder Carlos Watson to pose as YouTube executive Alex Piper during a February 2021 conference call in order to fool Goldman into thinking the failing digital media company was profitable.

Watson is on trial in Brooklyn, New York, on charges that ...