A Chinese ‘Bitcoin queen’ today pleaded guilty to laundering cryptocurrency from a £5billion investment fraud with the help of her takeaway worker assistant.
Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, admitted charges of possessing and transferring criminal property on the first day of her trial at Southwark Crown Court.
The 47-year-old, wearing glasses, a brown cardigan and an animal print top, was remanded in custody ahead of sentencing, which will take place at a later date.
Between 2014 and 2017, Qian orchestrated a large-scale fraud in China that stole from 128,000 victims before moving their funds into Bitcoin.
She then fled China using false documents and entered the UK, where in September 2018 she attempted to launder the proceeds via purchasing property, with the assistance of an assailant, Jian Wen.
She first came to police attention in 2018, when police seized 61,000 Bitcoin worth £5.1billion from Wen’s £5million mansion in Hampstead, which she moved into within weeks of arriving in the UK as a takeaway worker with just £5,000 to her name.
Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, appeared at Southwark Crown Court to admit charges of possessing and transferring criminal property on the first day of her trial
The Met did not realise the devices they had seized contained Bitcoin until 2021, by which point Qian at vanished. It is thought to be the largest law enforcement Bitcoin seizure ever.
She was not charged until April 2024 after she was arrested in York.
Qian emerged for relative obscurity to run a Chinese company called Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology, launched in March 2014.
The firm sold investment products with promised returns of up to 300 per cent. In reality, she was simply funnelling her investors’ money into Bitcoin for her own enrichment.
Will Lyne, The Met’s Head of Economic and Cybercrime Command, said officers were able to gather evidence with the assistance of police in China.
‘We were able to obtain compelling evidence of the criminal origins of the cryptoassets Qian attempted to launder in the UK,’ he said.
‘My thoughts are with the thousands of victims defrauded in this scheme, and I hope today’s outcome acknowledges the harm Qian inflicted and reinforces the Met’s unwavering commitment to justice.’
Qian’s assistant Jian Wen (pictured) was convicted of money laundering
Wen was living in a basement room under a Chinese takeaway in Abbey Wood, south-east London. But within weeks, she moved into this fabulous six-bedroom house in Hampstead Heath, paying £17,000 a month in rent in September 2017
Wen was convicted of money laundering and jailed for six years in 2014.
Commenting today, Detective Sargent Isabella Grotto, who led the Met’s investigation, said: ‘Today marks the result of years of painstaking work.
‘When our team located Zhimin Qian, she had been evading justice for five years, and her arrest triggered a complex investigation requiring evidence from multiple jurisdictions and the careful review of thousands of documents.
‘I am immensely proud of the investigation team and our partners who have worked tirelessly on this case.
‘Today’s plea reflects years of hard work across both the UK and China.
‘We are grateful for the support of the National Crime Agency and the Crown Prosecution Service, and to Chinese law enforcement teams in Tianjin and Beijing with whom we have collaborated throughout.’