Unless - hypothetically - some of them were looking for someone who would operate outside the law, but with pedigree and credibility.

There was a lot of money involved. There was a huge network of shell companies to hide it.

VCs, who are supposed to know what due diligence is, looked at some hilariously unprofessional books and said "We like the look of this."

Is it unreasonable to wonder what was going on?