A woman who orchestrated one of Britain’s largest cryptocurrency frauds has been imprisoned after being caught in a York holiday rental.
Zhimin Qian, 47, defrauded more than 128,000 victims in China through a Ponzi scheme before fleeing to the UK as an international fugitive.
The 47-year-old masterminded an investment scam that swindled approximately £5.5billion from 128,000 Chinese citizens through a fraudulent scheme operating between 2014 and 2017.
The con artist was finally apprehended in April last year whilst resting in bed at an Airbnb property in York, marking the end of one of the Metropolitan Police’s most protracted and intricate financial crime investigations.
Her accomplice, Seng Hok Ling, received a sentence of four years and 11 months for handling criminal assets.
Qian operated a company called Lantian Gerui, which translates to Blue Sky, claiming to develop cutting-edge health products and mine cryptocurrency whilst promising investors returns of up to 300 per cent.
The scheme targeted primarily elderly Chinese investors who were told they could “get rich while lying down”, according to police investigations.
When Chinese authorities began investigating her activities, Qian escaped to Britain in July 2017 using a Caribbean passport under an assumed identity.
Zhimin Qian targeted thousands
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REUTERS
Upon arrival, she recruited Jian Wen, a 42-year-old former takeaway employee from Leeds, through social media to assist in converting her digital fortune into spendable assets.
Wen was later convicted and sentenced to six years for money laundering offences.
The duo established themselves in an opulent £17,333-monthly rental property near Hampstead Heath, with Qian presenting herself as a wealthy jewellery heiress.
Their European spending spree spanned 48 weeks across 24 locations, with a single Swiss shopping trip seeing them purchase two timepieces for £119,200 at Van Cleef & Arpels in Zurich.
Zhimin Qian was arrested in a York holiday rental
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PA
Seized documents revealed Qian’s extraordinary ambitions, including plans to establish an international bank, acquire a Swedish castle, and cultivate relationships with British nobility.
Her diary outlined a six-year strategy with the ultimate goal of becoming monarch of Liberland, a disputed territory between Croatia and Serbia, by 2022.
Whilst her assistant handled business matters, Qian reportedly spent most days gaming and shopping online from her bed.
Metropolitan officers raided Qian’s Hampstead residence in 2018 after her attempts to purchase a £12.5million property in Totteridge Common raised suspicions when she couldn’t explain her wealth.
Although she evaded arrest during the initial raid, police discovered laptops containing 61,000 Bitcoin, currently valued at approximately £5billion, alongside over £200million in other assets.
“This largely draws to a close one of the longest running and most complex economic crime investigations that we’ve ever undertaken within the Metropolitan Police,” authorities stated.
Richard Thomas KC, mitigating on behalf of Qian, said his client has “no previous convictions” and has maintained an “exemplary record” while in custody.
Roger Sahota, Qian’s solicitor, said she “hopes some good endures from the wealth her work created”.
The Metropolitan Police’s head of economic and cybercrime command, Will Lyne, described it as “one of the largest and most complex” investigations the force had ever undertaken.
He said: “Today’s sentence would not have been possible without working closely with our partners from the Crown Prosecution Service, National Crime Agency and Chinese law enforcement.
“Organised crime groups are using cryptocurrency to move, hide and invest the profits of serious crime – but every crypto transaction leaves a trace and the Met works meticulously with partners to follow that digital trail, identify assets and bring offenders to justice.
“Our message is clear, criminal assets are not safe in the UK. The Met remains committed to protecting the public and this outcome shows the lengths we will go to secure justice for victims.”
Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan said: “Cryptocurrency fraud is worth billions, fuels international money laundering and props up organised criminal gangs, so I welcome this significant intervention by the Met.”