Chinese police arrest six suspects in $300 million cryptocurrency money laundering case

Last Updated: May 13, 2024 2:49am EDT | 2 minute read

The Public Security Bureau of Panshi City, Jilin Province, cracked down on an illegal operation involving underground banks and virtual currencies.

According to a report, the case, which involved about 2.14 billion yuan (about $300 million), led to the arrest of six people suspected of being involved in criminal activities related to money laundering between China and Korea South. ChinaNews.com report.

The suspects exploited the anonymous and decentralized nature of virtual currencies to conduct illegal foreign exchange transactions between the Chinese renminbi (RMB) and the South Korean won.

The scheme facilitated money laundering activities

The illicit scheme allowed them to facilitate large-scale money laundering activities across borders.

Authorities learned of the operation through the Economic Investigation Brigade of the Panshi City Public Security Bureau.

During their investigations, they uncovered crucial clues pointing to the involvement of Jilin resident Jin Moudong and his accomplice, Shen Mou, in conducting currency exchange businesses in both China and South Korea.

It was revealed that they lured unsuspecting individuals into fraudulent transactions before fleeing back to China.

After gathering substantial evidence, the police discovered that the bank accounts linked to Jin Moudong and Shen Mou had significant transaction volumes.

The accounts featured frequent inflows and outflows of funds, a diverse customer base, and transaction patterns consistent with illegal underground banking activities.

Using this information, police formed a task force to further investigate the criminal gang’s financial activities, social connections and organizational structure.

After some analysis, they managed to arrest Jin Moudong, Shen Mou and their associates.

The law enforcement operation led to the seizure of a considerable number of bank cards and instruments used to commit the crimes.

The investigation revealed that the criminal network in question was engaged in various illegal activities, such as using domestic accounts to receive and transfer funds, conducting over-the-counter (OTC) transactions of virtual currencies and settling transactions in Korean won.

Their business targeted Korean purchasing agents, cross-border e-commerce platforms and import-export trading companies, providing them with the means to exchange RMB for Korean won and vice versa.

Six arrested in connection with Austrian crypto fraud

A joint operation involving the national authorities of Austria, Cyprus and the Czech Republic led to the arrest of six people linked to an online scam related to the sale of rights or tokens for a supposed new cryptocurrency.

Supported by Eurojust and Europol, the coordinated action led to the seizure and freezing of assets totaling €2 million.

In another incident, Instagram influencer Jebara Igbara, known as “Jay Mazini”, was sentenced to seven years in prison for orchestrating a multi-million dollar crypto Ponzi scheme.

More recently, Queensland Police took action against an alleged cryptocurrency investment fraud operating on the Gold Coast, resulting in arrest and charging of four people.

The investigation, conducted by the Financial and Cyber ​​Crime Group Money Laundering Unit, began in July 2022.

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