In an effort to raise his public profile and thereby convince more victims to invest in his fraudulent scheme, Hsu pressured many of his victims to individually contribute thousands of dollars to various candidates for President of the United States, the United States Senate, and the United States House of Representatives whom Hsu supported. Hsu allegedly made direct and implied threats to these victims, leading them to believe that their failure to make the required political contributions would adversely impact their ongoing investment relationships with Hsu.