A Chinese national has been convicted following an international fraud investigation which resulted in what’s believed to be the single largest cryptocurrency seizure in the world.
The Metropolitan Police says it recovered 61,000 bitcoin worth more than £5bn ($6.7bn) in current prices.
Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, pleaded guilty on Monday at Southwark Crown Court of illegally acquiring and possessing the cryptocurrency.
Between 2014 and 2017 she led a large-scale scam in China which involved cheating more than 128,000 victims and storing the stolen funds in bitcoin assets, the Met said in a statement.
It said the 47-year-old’s guilty plea followed a seven-year probe into a global money laundering web which began when it got a tipoff about the transfer of criminal assets.
Qian had been “evading justice” for five years up to her arrest, which required a complex investigation involving multiple jurisdictions, said Detective Sergeant Isabella Grotto, who led the Met’s investigation.
She fled China using false documents and entered the UK, where she attempted to launder the stolen money by buying property, said the Met.
“By pleading guilty today, Ms Zhang hopes to bring some comfort to investors who have waited since 2017 for compensation, and to reassure them that the significant rise in cryptocurrency values means there are more than sufficient funds available to repay their losses,” said Qian’s solicitor Roger Sahota, of Berkeley Square Solicitors.
But some reports have suggested the UK government will seek to retain the seized funds.
The BBC has approached the Treasury and the Home Office for a response.
Reforms to crime legislation under the previous Conservative government aimed to make it easier for the UK authorities to seize, freeze and recover crypto assets.
The changes would also allow some victims to apply for the release of their assets held in accounts.
(BBC)
