Illegal Virtual Currency Operation Worth 21.4 Billion Yuan Busted In China

According to BlockBeats, on May 13, the Public Security Bureau of Panshi City in Jilin Province, China, successfully cracked down on an illegal underground money exchange operation using virtual currency. The case involved an estimated 21.4 billion yuan, and six suspects who committed crimes in both China and South Korea were apprehended. The suspects exploited the anonymity, decentralization, and borderless nature of virtual currency transactions to illegally conduct RMB and Korean Won exchange services. The Panshi City Public Security Bureau's Economic Investigation Team discovered crucial clues during their work. A Jilin resident, Jin, and Shen were found to be conducting Won exchange services in South Korea and China. They defrauded others of their money and then fled back to their home country. Upon investigating these leads, the police found that the bank accounts under the two individuals had massive transaction flows. The frequent inflow and outflow of funds were irregular, with numerous transaction clients. The movement of funds matched the characteristics of illegal underground money exchange operations. The police task force conducted a comprehensive analysis of Jin and Shen's bank funds and social relations, expanding the organizational structure and transaction levels, gradually gaining a complete understanding of the gang's organizational structure and the direction of funds. Subsequently, the police successfully arrested the criminal suspects Jin, Shen, and others, and legally seized a large number of bank cards involved in the case and tools used in the crime. The police found that the criminal gang used domestic accounts to receive and transfer funds, OTC buying and selling of virtual currency, and Korean Won settlement, among other methods, to illegally engage in foreign exchange business. They helped groups such as Korean purchasing agents, cross-border e-commerce, import and export trading companies, etc., to realize the exchange of RMB and Korean Won. Through extensive investigation and evidence collection, the police successively arrested Chen, Luo, He, Zheng, and others.