China's 'cryptoqueen' jailed in UK over $6.6 billion Bitcoin scam

A Chinese pistillate has been sentenced to implicit 11 years successful situation successful Britain for laundering wealth from a large scam successful China

LONDON -- A Chinese pistillate who was recovered with 5 cardinal pounds ($6.6 billion) successful Bitcoin aft defrauding much than 128,000 radical successful China successful a Ponzi strategy was sentenced by a U.K. tribunal connected Tuesday to implicit 11 years successful prison.

Police said the probe into Zhimin Qian, 47, led to officers recovering devices holding 61,000 Bitcoin successful the largest cryptocurrency seizure successful the U.K.

Qian, dubbed “cryptoqueen” by British media, was arrested successful April 2024 aft spending years evading the authorities and surviving an “extravagant” manner successful Europe, staying successful luxury hotels crossed the continent and buying good jewelry and watches, prosecutors said.

Police said she ran a pyramid strategy that lured much than 128,000 radical to put successful her concern betwixt 2014 and 2017, including galore who invested their beingness savings and pensions. Authorities said she stored the illegally obtained funds successful Bitcoin assets.

When she attracted the attraction of Chinese authorities, Qian fled to the U.K. nether a fake identity. Once successful London, constabulary said she rented a “lavish” location for implicit 17,000 pounds ($23,000) per month.

Investigators recovered notes Qian had written documenting her aspirations — including her "intention to go the monarch of Liberland, a self-proclaimed state consisting of a portion of onshore betwixt Croatia and Serbia.”

The businesswoman, who had pleaded blameworthy to wealth laundering offenses and transferring and possessing transgression property, was sentenced Tuesday to 11 years and 8 months astatine Southwark Crown Court.

She was sentenced alongside her accomplice Seng Hok Ling, 47, a Malaysian nationalist who was accused of helping Qian transportation and launder the cryptocurrency. Ling was jailed astatine the aforesaid tribunal for 4 years and 11 months aft helium pleaded blameworthy to 1 number of transferring transgression property.

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