New Development in China-Linked $6 Billion Bitcoin Fraud Case

A London court jury found a woman guilty of laundering large amounts of Bitcoin in connection with a nearly $6 billion investment scam in China. The defendant, 42-year-old British citizen Jian Wen, was found guilty of one count of money laundering. However, the jury could not reach a verdict on the other two charges.

Jian Wen was accused of helping a Chinese fugitive launder money between 2017 and 2022. In a 2018 raid on a house in London where Jian lived with Zhimin Qian, police seized 1.7 billion pounds ($2.2 billion) worth of Bitcoin.

Although found guilty, Jian has consistently denied all charges against him. He claimed he was unaware of Zhimin’s alleged fraud in China or that the money he was transacting was fraudulent. It is noteworthy that Jian was not accused of any role in the fraud in China, which prosecutors estimate reached approximately $6 billion.

Zhimin arrived in the UK in September 2017 under the pseudonym Yadi Zhang. But in 2020, he fled the country just two days before he was due to be questioned by London police.

Zhimin was portrayed at the hearing as a “master of tricks” who deceived approximately 130,000 financially savvy and astute investors in China by creating ten investment vehicles managed through seven offices across China.

After the decision was made public, Detective Chief Inspector Jason Prins of London’s Metropolitan Police said: “We have managed to disrupt a sophisticated economic crime operation that has revealed how international criminals are trying to misuse cryptocurrencies online.”

*This is not investment advice.