Paul Ceglia is accused of fabricating and destroying evidence in a lawsuit asking for half-ownership of the firm. Arrested at his home in Wellsville, New York, Mr Ceglia was due in court on Friday afternoon.
US Attorney Preet Bharara said the entrepreneur had been chasing a "quick payday based on a blatant forgery".
In 2003, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, then a Harvard University student, agreed to do programming work for Mr Ceglia and his fax business, say prosecutors.
Mr Ceglia later filed his lawsuit claiming that he and Mr Zuckerberg had signed a two-page contract awarding him a 50% stake in Facebook. But Mr Zuckerberg said he had not yet conceived the idea for the social network at the time.
Source: BBC News
