One case after another, where will the 61,000 bitcoins go?

Author: Gyro Finance

Living in a luxury home with a monthly rent of up to 155,000 yuan, surrounded by luxury cars and traveling around, or spending hundreds of thousands in high-end shopping malls, running around with jewelry scattered all over, and even buying several villas…

Just from the description, it's hard to imagine that this is the life of an ordinary British takeout delivery driver. However, all of this did happen to the Chinese woman Wen Jian. Without much thought, it's clear that where there's an abnormality, there must be something fishy, and the police naturally targeted her.

On March 18, a British court found 42-year-old Wen Jian guilty of money laundering and sentenced her on May 10. During the investigation, the police seized over 61,000 bitcoins, currently valued at about 3.4 billion pounds, making it the largest amount of cryptocurrency ever seized. The total amount involved in the main case reached a staggering 6.3 billion US dollars, making this the world's largest money laundering case.

Similar to all stories of overnight wealth and sudden downfall, Wen Jian also encountered what she called her "benefactor." If it weren't for the investigation by the British police, perhaps Wen Jian would still be living in the dream of sudden wealth and gratitude to her benefactor for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, she ended up in prison, while her benefactor's whereabouts remain unknown. Unbeknownst to her, this "domineering CEO falls in love with me" drama also involved a major case in China seven years ago—the 43 billion yuan illegal fundraising case of Blue Sky Grid.

This case within the 61,000 bitcoins case has become even more mysterious.

01 Case Start: A sudden fortune for a takeout delivery driver after meeting her "benefactor"

From her background, Wen Jian was no different from an ordinary person, and even lived in poverty for a period of time. Born in 1982 into a working-class family in China, her family was of modest means. She later met her husband, Marcus Baraklava. In 2007, Wen Jian became pregnant and came to the UK on a spouse visa.

Wen Jian's photo, source: publicly available on the internet

However, the family of three quickly fell apart. Shortly after the birth of her son, Wen Jian divorced her husband and became a single mother, struggling to make ends meet. Despite the difficulties, she did not give up on herself. Even though life was tough, she obtained a bachelor's degree in law and economics in Leeds. In 2017, Wen Jian moved to London and, in order to support her family, she lived in the basement of a Chinese takeout restaurant in Abbey Wood, working as a delivery driver, earning an annual income of 5,979 pounds (about 54,000 RMB), which was a mere drop in the bucket for a single mother in the UK. To ease the financial pressure, Wen Jian took on various odd jobs. Perhaps due to her relatively high level of education, she also came into contact with some part-time work involving cryptocurrencies.

The turning point in her fate came from a job posting. Wen Jian happened to come across a job posting on WeChat from a woman who claimed to be engaged in international trade of diamonds and antiques, looking for a "housekeeper" with a very generous salary. Without much hesitation, Wen Jian contacted this mysterious recruiter.

This contact also brought Wen Jian's future "benefactor," Zhang Yadi (pseudonym for Qian Zhimin), into her life.

At the five-star Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington, the two hit it off, and Qian Zhimin quickly hired Wen Jian as her full-time caregiver and housekeeper, with a monthly salary of 30,000 pounds, including a million-pound bonus. Perhaps to show off her wealth and trust, on the day they met, Qian Zhimin paid Wen Jian 40,000 pounds. And just like that, Wen Jian moved from the basement to a luxury home in Hampstead with a monthly rent of over 150,000, starting her life of transformation.

Her job was simple: to open cryptocurrency accounts for trading and cashing out, and to spend money on behalf of her employer.

According to Wen Jian, Qian Zhimin, who had previously been in a car accident, had difficulty walking, had difficulty breathing, and was very weak. She spent over 20 hours in bed every day, often had nightmares, and upon waking up, she would play games and shop on her laptop, as well as sell bitcoins.

Subsequently, the two posed as jewelry traders, traveling across various European countries under pseudonyms, exchanging cashed-out bitcoins for high-end jewelry, and even splurging millions on a watch at Van Cleef & Arpels. Various funds continuously flowed through Wen Jian's accounts in various forms to Qian Zhimin, and Qian Zhimin kept her promise, allowing Wen Jian to live the luxurious life she had always dreamed of. Wen Jian's son was sent to Heathside Preparatory School next to the luxury home, with a tuition fee of 6,000 pounds per semester. Wen Jian also bought a Mercedes E-Class worth 25,000 pounds and became a VIP at the top luxury department store Harrods, where she spent over 90,000 pounds (about 810,000 RMB) on designer clothing, jewelry, and shoes in just three months.

The luxury home in the UK where Wen Jian and Qian Zhimin lived together, source: publicly available on the internet

In addition to jewelry and daily expenses, real estate was a top priority for spending. In Dubai, Wen Jian spent 500,000 pounds on an apartment; in Italy, she bid on a 10 million pound Venetian sea-view antique mansion, and then bought a 4.5 million pound property in London.

In 2018, as she attempted to purchase a 7-bedroom mansion with a swimming pool in Hampstead for 23.5 million pounds (about 2 billion RMB), as well as a nearby mansion worth 12.5 million pounds (about 1 billion RMB), the excessive real estate spending caught the attention of regulators. According to current UK requirements, regulatory authorities required Wen Jian to provide proof of the legality of the funds, proving that she did not violate anti-money laundering regulations. However, Wen Jian clearly could not provide this, and the transaction was eventually abandoned, arousing suspicion from the police.

02 Case Turn: Police shatter the dream, 61,000 bitcoins surface

In the early hours of October 31, 2018, the police obtained a search warrant and entered Wen Jian and Qian Zhimin's home, seizing 69,000 pounds in cash on the spot, as well as laptops, tablets, a pink USB drive, and private key passwords stored in metal cans. The next day, the police found electronic devices in a safe. However, perhaps due to insufficient evidence at the time, the police did not detain the two, but instead returned their passports six months later.

Cash seized by the police at Wen Jian's home, source: Phoenix News

After nearly two years of investigation, in 2020, the police once again searched the two's luxury homes. Just a month after this search, Qian Zhimin, sensing danger, disappeared from the UK.

In 2021, after three years of investigation, the British police finally confirmed that the electronic devices contained over 61,000 bitcoins, one of the largest amounts of bitcoins ever seized by law enforcement in the UK. At the time, these bitcoins were valued at up to 1.4 billion pounds (about 12.7 billion RMB), and are now worth over 3.4 billion pounds (about 31 billion RMB).

In May 2021, Wen Jian was officially arrested. Unexpectedly, during the interrogation, Wen Jian claimed to have no knowledge of the source of the funds, stating that she was simply following orders. Initially, she claimed that the cryptocurrency was a legitimate income from mining, and later claimed that it was a "gift of love" from Qian Zhimin, emphasizing that Qian Zhimin was just a wealthy businessman who obtained wealth through jewelry business, real estate investment, and legal bitcoin mining. In other words, she was just an innocent scapegoat.

Against this backdrop, Wen Jian was acquitted of 10 of the 12 charges in her first trial in 2023, with 2 charges remaining undetermined. However, due to subsequent investigations revealing that she had control over one of the wallets containing illicit funds, indicating a certain criminal intent, Wen Jian was ultimately convicted of money laundering in a trial in March and was classified as a high-risk Class A criminal due to the large amount involved. She will be sentenced in May this year.

The dream has turned into tears behind bars. Although Wen Jian's story basically ends here, Qian Zhimin's story has yet to reach its conclusion.

Case Involving Over Hundreds of Billions of RMB: Where Did It Come From? How Did an Ordinary Middle-Aged Woman Bring a Large Sum of Money to the UK? All of This Also Involves an Old Case from 7 Years Ago.

03 Case Conclusion: Revisiting the 7-Year Old Illegal Fundraising Case, Mysterious Woman Escapes Again

In March 2014, Tianjin Blue Sky Grid Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. was established with a registered capital of 30 million RMB, claiming to be engaged in electronic circuit design, development, and electronic product research and development. The company appeared normal on the surface, but in reality, it was engaged in pyramid schemes under the guise of technology, claiming to have a side business of bitcoin mining and deceiving investors with high returns.

Specifically, the company used "high returns," "guaranteed profits," and "three-generation wealth theory" as bait, launching multiple so-called "short-term investment and financial management" products with terms ranging from six months to 30 months and investment thresholds from 6,000 to 60,000 RMB, with guaranteed annualized returns of 100% to 300%. From a promotional perspective, Blue Sky Grid quickly established over 30 branch offices nationwide through a multi-level marketing approach, with the majority of victims being elderly people.

On August 17, 2016, the Linghai Public Security Bureau organized police forces to bring back over 20 people suspected of engaging in illegal pyramid schemes at a commercial hotel in the city for investigation, only to discover that all 20 were employees of Blue Sky Grid. The police realized that the situation was not simple and during the investigation, believed that the company's actions were suspected of illegally absorbing public deposits. The then general manager, Wu Xiaolong, was immediately criminally detained. Subsequently, Blue Sky Grid attempted to bribe members of the investigation team with 15 million RMB to secure Wu Xiaolong's release on bail, sparking widespread public debate.

In 2017, Blue Sky Grid's products collapsed, and the public security bureau officially filed a case. In 2019, 50 people at various levels of Blue Sky Grid were arrested, including the legal representative and general manager. It wasn't until December 2022 that Blue Sky Grid began the slow process of refunding. It was revealed that the case involved over 128,000 investors and an illegal amount of 43 billion RMB.

The actual operator behind this organization was Qian Zhimin (also known as "Huahua"). However, she remained almost invisible throughout the entire case. From the perspective of the company's registered personnel, she had planned early on, appointing Ren Jiangtao as the legal representative with a monthly salary of 26,948 RMB and a one-time bonus of 997,000 RMB, and instructing him to open a Huobi account, claiming that he would handle all legal issues.

However, as soon as Ren Jiangtao was investigated by the police, Qian Zhimin immediately transferred the bitcoins and began her journey as a fugitive. In terms of her escape route, Qian Zhimin was meticulous, using a Burmese passport purchased under the name NAN YIN, and then obtaining another passport from Saint Kitts and Nevis under the alias Zhang Yadi. In this way, she fled from Myanmar to the UK, arriving in London in 2017.

Qian Zhimin's fake passport, source: publicly available on the internet

It is reported that Qian Zhimin detailed her escape plan in her personal notebook, first purchasing the private country of Liberland, then obtaining diplomatic immunity by building the largest Buddhist temple in Europe and being recognized as the reincarnated goddess and queen of Liberland. Deceiving billions and wanting to be a goddess, the entire plan can be described as extremely arrogant.

Due to her lack of proficiency in English and poor health, she decided to find an intermediary in London to handle the illicit funds. It was at this time that Wen Jian entered her field of vision. Being in a foreign country, without support and in need of money, these traits meant she was easy to control, which may have been why Qian Zhimin chose Wen Jian. As expected, almost identical to Ren Jiangtao's operation, Wen Jian inadvertently became an accomplice under various temptations.

Even in her daily interactions with Wen Jian, Qian Zhimin did not let her guard down. The countries they visited together did not have extradition agreements with China, and Qian Zhimin never appeared in photos to avoid revealing her whereabouts, showing a first-class counter-surveillance awareness. It is not surprising that Qian Zhimin could quickly disappear at the first sign of trouble. Currently, her whereabouts remain unknown, and she has been placed on the Interpol's red notice list.

04 Case Legacy: Will the Huge Sum of Money End Up in Someone Else's Hands?

Looking at the entire situation, while it is infuriating that the mastermind is at large, what is more concerning is the distribution of the seized funds. From the source, the enormous sum of 3.4 billion pounds was undoubtedly obtained from Chinese individuals, but based on the current situation, it is more likely to end up in the hands of the UK.

Currently, the UK's Royal Inspection Office has initiated civil recovery proceedings in the High Court to determine if there are other legitimate claimants. If no one claims recovery, the entire amount will be confiscated, with half going to the UK police and the other half to the UK Home Office.

However, cross-border recovery itself is extremely difficult, and the likelihood of individual claims is minimal. Even if the Chinese government, judicial authorities, and police are involved, the difficulty is high. According to past patterns, successful cross-border recovery events are extremely rare, especially when it comes to virtual currency, where ownership determination, value assessment, and technical means are all lacking. Even in China, there is no comprehensive method for handling this. Therefore, although the division of seized funds is an internationally accepted practice, even if both China and the UK enter into diplomatic coordination, the return of domestic assets is not optimistic. According to Caixin's report, based on the current progress of Blue Sky Grid's refund in the case, it is estimated that less than 5% of the domestic funds will be returned.

The only turning point would be capturing Qian Zhimin. In this case, when China and the UK, as members of the FATF, cooperate in recovering and reclaiming the funds, China could also gain more benefits. However, from an ethical perspective, and regardless of the difficulty, for the UK, perhaps it would be simpler if Qian Zhimin is not captured, as the assets of up to 31 billion pounds, even for a country, are a huge sum.

For the parties involved, it will ultimately be a futile effort. No matter how cunning and close to the demon, most of the ill-gotten gains will eventually end up in someone else's hands. It is unknown what thoughts Qian Zhimin, who is still on the run with a broken body and likely cannot end well, has, and who the anger of the 130,000 deceived individuals should be directed towards.

For Wen Jian, who is now in prison, fate has been both kind and cruel, causing her to lose the vigilance she should have had in the face of greed and desire. Whether the source of Qian Zhimin's enormous wealth was truly unknown to her or she preferred not to know, it seems that there is no longer any need for discussion.

But what is lamentable and also a warning is not to become the next Wen Jian, as the temptation of sudden wealth is hard to resist, but behind unearned wealth, there may be a prison disaster paved with iron chains and blood.

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