A Chinese woman, Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, has admitted in a UK court to holding and acquiring criminal property worth 61,000 Bitcoin
The cryptocurrency, seized by police, is valued at nearly $7 billion at the time of writing.
Investigators stated that Qian operated a large investment scam between 2014 and 2017, which misled around 128,000 people. The money taken from victims was moved into Bitcoin.
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After leaving China in 2018, she entered the UK with false documents and attempted to launder the funds through property purchases, assisted by her associate, Jian Wen.
The Metropolitan Police carried out a seven-year investigation into the case. Between 2018 and 2021, officers recovered the full amount of cryptocurrency.
Will Lyne, head of the Met’s economic and cybercrime unit, described it as one of the biggest laundering cases in the country’s history and said the team’s persistence had paid off.
The Crown Prosecution Service emphasized that digital assets are being used by criminals to conceal illicit earnings. Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Robin Weyell explained that criminals often use cryptocurrency to conceal their profits and transfer them across borders.
She added that the CPS will continue working with law enforcement to prosecute those involved in such crimes.
Recently, Interpol conducted a large-scale international operation that recovered $439 million linked to criminal activity. How does the case unfold? Read the full story.
