Zhimin Qian, 47, cheated more than 128,000 victims in China before trying to launder cryptocurrency by buying UK property.
UK authorities convicted the Chinese woman for directing a major Bitcoin fraud after the world’s largest cryptocurrency seizure, valued at 5.5 billion pounds (€6.3 billion).
Qian, also called Yadi Zhang, admitted at London’s Southwark Crown Court that she acquired and possessed the cryptocurrency illegally.
Years-Long Investigation Exposes Global Crime
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that her plea followed a seven-year international money laundering investigation.
Between 2014 and 2017, she organized a vast fraud in China, deceived more than 128,000 victims, and stored the funds as Bitcoin.
She then escaped China using forged documents and reached the UK, where she attempted to clean the illegal wealth through property purchases in late 2018.
Police seized 61,000 Bitcoins from Qian, declaring the case one of the largest money laundering operations in UK history and among the most valuable cryptocurrency crimes worldwide.
Criminal Network Faces Consequences
Another Chinese woman, 43-year-old Jian Wen, previously received a conviction for involvement in the fraud and now serves a six-year, eight-month prison sentence.
Authorities will announce Qian’s sentence later.
Robin Weyell, deputy chief crown prosecutor, stated that criminals increasingly exploit cryptocurrencies to conceal and move assets for personal gain.
He confirmed that the Crown Prosecution Service will pursue criminal confiscation and civil actions to block fraudsters from reclaiming illicit assets.
