The main culprit of the 70,000 Bitcoin fundraising case has been sentenced, and details of the Bitcoin concealment have been revealed.

Author: Wang Lina, Reporter of Caijing

The largest Bitcoin seizure case in the UK involving 70,000 Bitcoins has resulted in the sentencing of Qian Zhimin, the main culprit in a case of illegal public deposit solicitation in China, in the UK.

On November 11, local time in the UK, Qian Zhimin was sentenced to 11 years and 8 months in prison by a UK court. On September 29, prior to this, Qian Zhimin pleaded guilty in court, acknowledging two charges of possessing and transferring criminal proceeds in cryptocurrency.

With the sentencing of Qian Zhimin's criminal case, more details about Qian Zhimin's escape, concealment, and transfer of Bitcoin have been revealed. How the British police will handle over 61,000 seized Bitcoins will be key in the next steps of this case.

The transfer from a Bitcoin wallet that was dormant for 5 years exposes its whereabouts

In February 2024, a Bitcoin wallet that had been dormant for five years transferred 8.2 Bitcoin to a trading account belonging to a person named Seng Hok Ling (phonetic, hereinafter referred to as “Ling Zenghao”). Court hearings revealed that this transaction was what brought Qian Zhimin and Ling Zenghao to the surface, exposing them to police scrutiny, which ultimately led to their arrest.

Before fleeing to the UK, Qian Zhimin was the actual controller of Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Lantian Gerui”). Chinese judicial authorities determined that Lantian Gerui was established in 2014, with Qian Zhimin registered as the legal representative under someone else's name, but the company was actually controlled by Qian Zhimin. Lantian Gerui does not have qualifications as a banking financial institution and used promises of capital return, interest payment, and high returns as bait to sign investment agreements for financial products with unspecified members of the public to raise funds. From April 2014 to August 2017, it illegally raised more than 40.22 billion yuan, all of which was controlled and managed by Qian Zhimin. Currently, it has been judicially recognized in China that several individuals have been sentenced in the Lantian Gerui illegal fundraising case.

According to relevant judicial documents, Qian Zhimin met a man named Zhao Linfeng in 2014, and they developed a romantic relationship. Qian Zhimin spent approximately 10 million yuan purchasing precious items such as agarwood, antiques, and jade from Zhao Linfeng's company. In February 2017, Qian Zhimin proposed that Zhao Linfeng find a way to help her illegally cross the border, and with Zhao Linfeng's assistance, Qian Zhimin escaped across the border.

In September 2017, Qian Zhimin fled to the UK. After trying to exchange Bitcoin for funds and purchasing high-value properties in the UK and other places, he attracted the attention and investigation of the British police, and subsequently went “invisible” again in the UK (refer to the May 29, 2024 report by Caijing: The Fundraising, Money Laundering, and Chinese Fugitive Behind 61,000 Bitcoins).

In the Bitcoin exchange and real estate transaction, Wen Jian (transliteration) acted as an assistant to Qian Zhimin, who was prosecuted by the British police. Due to involvement in money laundering crimes, Wen Jian was sentenced to 80 months in prison by a British court. The judge wrote in Wen Jian's ruling, “While others ran away, you stayed, and the number of people who did so is very few.”

In August 2020, when the British police searched the house rented by Qian Zhimin for the second time, Qian Zhimin had already disappeared and was missing. Previously, when the police searched the residence, Qian Zhimin was lying in a bedroom, claiming that her leg was injured and she could not go downstairs, and told the police that she was Zhang Yadi (phonetic), which was the name on a passport she held from the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis.

The escape will eventually be exposed. On April 22, 2024, Qian Zhiming was arrested in the city of York in Northeast England. At the time, Qian Zhiming was carrying four cryptocurrency wallets, which were worth over £62 million at the time. In addition, Qian Zhiming also possessed two fake passports and a large amount of cash.

Qian Zhiming's journey of escape is not solitary. When Qian Zhiming was arrested in York, he was living with four foreign nationals. These four were brought to the UK illegally to work for Qian Zhiming, responsible for his daily needs and helping to hide his identity and whereabouts. Ling Zenghao is another accomplice of Qian Zhiming after Wenzhan, assisting Qian Zhiming with Bitcoin transactions, conversions, and the purchase of overseas properties.

When he was arrested in the UK, Qian Zhimin had been on the run for seven years.

Fleeing with 70,000 Bitcoins

Qian Zhimin arrived in the UK via a winding route.

According to court hearings in the UK, on July 26, 2017, Qian Zhimin left China with a laptop. On September 16, 2017, when Qian Zhimin entered the UK, he transformed into Zhang Yadi, holding Zhang Yadi's passport. However, upon entering the UK, Zhang Yadi did not carry the laptop that was taken from China. More than a month later, that laptop was brought to the UK by his “front desk” assistant Wen Jian, who retrieved it from Thailand, and after another month, Wen Jian went to Thailand again to retrieve another laptop.

The Blue Sky Ge Rui case occurred in China in 2017. On April 21, 2017, the Hedong Branch of Tianjin Public Security Bureau initiated an investigation into Blue Sky Ge Rui for allegedly illegally absorbing public deposits.

The court hearing revealed that when the Chinese police began their investigation, over 70,000 Bitcoins had already been transferred to a cryptocurrency wallet stored on a laptop. This laptop was subsequently taken to the UK and placed in a safe jointly set up by Qian Zhimin and Wen Jian. On November 1, 2018, the police searched this safe and seized the laptop and related items. The initial over 70,000 Bitcoins were quickly transferred to several other cryptocurrency wallets. By October 31, 2018, the number of Bitcoins held by Qian Zhimin had increased to 71,417, stored in seven cryptocurrency wallets. After Qian Zhimin arrived in the UK, the circulation of Bitcoins, including transfers between wallets and later transactions or conversions, exceeded 18,000 Bitcoins.

Court information states that at the time of the police seizure, the total value of the cryptocurrency held by Qian Zhimin exceeded £384 million. By the time the police recovered these cryptocurrencies through technical means (between June 2021 and September 2025), their value had exceeded £1.5 billion.

In a court trial in the UK, it was confirmed that the involved Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies originated from the proceeds of a large-scale investment fraud that occurred in China, carried out by Qian Zhimin and others through the company Blue Sky Gerui, established in April 2014. More than 128,000 investors were involved, with the total amount exceeding 40 billion yuan. In June 2014, Qian Zhimin opened an account at the Huobi cryptocurrency exchange in the name of a partner at Blue Sky Gerui, transferring investors' funds into that account to be converted into Bitcoin. Additionally, some investors' funds were used to purchase Bitcoin through over-the-counter transactions.

In this regard, China's judicial determination found that Lantian Ge Rui illegally raised funds exceeding 40.228 billion yuan, of which 34.118 billion yuan was used to repay over 128,000 fundraising participants, 336.7 million yuan was used for the company's daily expenses and project operations, and the remaining funds were used to purchase real estate, jewelry, cars, and other purposes. After the case occurred, the public security authorities made every effort to recover the stolen funds, legally freezing and seizing a batch of funds, real estate, vehicles, and other assets involved in the case, freezing 1.8 billion yuan of the funds involved, seizing over 500 million yuan in cash, and seizing jewelry, gold bars, and other items and sealing relevant real estate.

According to the audit in the Blue Sky Grayscale non-absorption case, Blue Sky Grayscale spent a total of 1.14 billion yuan to purchase Bitcoin. From April 2014 to July 2017, the price of one Bitcoin ranged from 310 to 3000 USD.

On the run, multiple attempts to buy a house overseas

The proceeds from fraud and Bitcoin earnings have supported Qian Zhimin's luxurious lifestyle and travel in the UK, as well as the purchase of high-net-worth properties overseas, all carried out through his accomplices Wen Jian and Ling Zenghao in the “front office” in the UK.

In the UK, it is not clear how Qian Zhiming found these accomplices to take risks. The 43-year-old Wen Jian, originally from China, rented a house in the UK after divorcing her then-husband and had worked in a Chinese takeaway. A few days after Qian Zhiming arrived in the UK, Wen Jian moved into the luxury apartment rented by Qian Zhiming, helping him open a bank account, obtain a driver's license, and accompanying him on trips and purchasing high-value properties, claiming to be Qian Zhiming's personal assistant.

47-year-old Ling Zenghao, who is the same age as Qian Zhimin, is of Malaysian Chinese descent. Ling Zenghao has a criminal record in Hong Kong. In 2015, at Hong Kong Airport, Ling Zenghao attempted to use 10 counterfeit credit cards to purchase two high-value watches in one day. He pleaded guilty to fraud charges and was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Afterwards, according to Ling Zenghao, he met Qian Zhimin and Wen Jian in Germany in 2019.

After contacting Qian Zhiming, Ling Zenghao attempted three times to find forged passports for Qian Zhiming in 2020 and 2022. After Wen Jian was arrested, Ling Zenghao assisted Qian Zhiming in arranging overseas hired household staff, creating forged documents, and in 2024 helped Qian Zhiming frequently change residences and rent houses under false names.

Regarding Qian Zhimin's past, Ling Zenghao was not completely unaware. Court records indicate that in early 2024, Ling Zenghao searched online for trial information related to the Wen Jian case, and subsequently searched for information on Lantian Ge Rui Company. Even so, Ling Zenghao still accepted the Bitcoin that Qian Zhimin transferred to his cryptocurrency wallet.

In February and April 2024, Ling Zenghao received 67.7 bitcoins from Qian Zhiming, which were quickly converted into different types of cryptocurrencies and subsequently exchanged for UAE Dirhams, British Pounds, Singapore Dollars, and other currencies. One of the exchanges involved 10.13 bitcoins, which were transferred to an associated person in Dubai, converted into fiat currency, and deposited into multiple bank accounts, with part of it used to purchase property in Dubai. Ling Zenghao also used cryptocurrencies to pay for Qian Zhiming's housing rental fees and to hire staff.

It is reported that in Dubai, Wen Jian helped Qian Zhiming purchase two properties, which were immediately rented out and resold within a year. Wen Jian also went to Saint Kitts and Nevis to look for investment opportunities.

In the UK, Qian Zhimin and Wen Jian attempted to exchange Bitcoin to purchase two high-net-worth properties, one valued at £23.5 million and the other at £12.5 million, which drew police attention, leading to the exposure of Qian Zhimin, the main suspect in the Blue Sky Ge Rui illegal public deposit case, to the police.

The Difficulties of Cross-Border Recovery of Involved Bitcoin

After being taken into custody in the UK, Qian Zhimin insisted on his innocence during questioning, remaining silent for most of the time.

On September 29, 2025, Qian Zhimin stood trial at the Southwark Crown Court in London, UK. On the first day of the trial, Qian Zhimin unexpectedly pleaded guilty, surprising those present in the courtroom, leading to speculation that he was seeking a lighter sentence by admitting guilt.

The sentencing hearing revealed that Qian Zhimin actively engaged in various projects while in prison, demonstrating a positive attitude and diligent work ethic, and even improved his English skills. Qian Zhimin's behavior in prison was described by his defense attorney as that of a “model prisoner.”

On November 11, the UK court made a sentencing decision for Qian Zhimin and Ling Zenghao. The UK court sentenced Qian Zhimin to 11 years and 8 months in prison; if Qian Zhimin had not pleaded guilty during the previous hearing, he would have been sentenced to 13 years in prison. Ling Zenghao was sentenced to 4 years and 11 months in prison.

The British judge stated in the ruling that Qian Zhiming caused harm to investors that “far exceeded financial losses.” Some victims lost their properties, their physical and mental health were affected, their marriages and family relationships broke down, and a sense of shame followed them throughout their lives. Qian Zhiming is the mastermind behind this crime, with an unprecedented scale of money laundering, and “the motive was pure greed.”

Zheng Jian (a pseudonym), who lives in a southwestern city in China, is an investor involved in the Blue Sky Ge Rui case and has been closely following the developments of the Qian Zhiming case. Zheng Jian and his ex-wife purchased multiple financial products from Blue Sky Ge Rui, subscribing to more than 10 bitcoins. After the Blue Sky Ge Rui incident, Zheng Jian realized that this investment was a scam disguised as an investment, suffering losses of over a million yuan, which led to the collapse of his marriage with his ex-wife. In recent years, Zheng Jian has reached retirement age, but he cannot rest easy and still has to look for opportunities to make money to repay his debts.

Shortly before Qian Zhimin's sentencing, on October 30, the Tianjin police issued a notice regarding the “Blue Sky Ge Rui” case. The notice stated that the main criminal suspect, Qian Zhimin, has fled to the UK. The Tianjin Public Security Bureau is conducting in-depth international cooperation with UK law enforcement agencies through international law enforcement and judicial cooperation channels to pursue and recover assets. Currently, the public security agencies are still continuing cross-border cooperation with UK law enforcement agencies in pursuing fugitives and recovering assets, doing their utmost to recover the losses of the fundraising participants.

Ding Jie, the Director of the Cross-Border Dispute Resolution Committee of Duan & Duan Law Firm and Deputy Director of the Beijing Office, is currently entrusted by over a hundred fundraising participants to undertake the cross-border recovery work of the Lantian Gerui case involving Bitcoin. Regarding the sentencing of Qian Zhimin by the UK court, Ding Jie analyzed to Caijing reporters that the UK judge presented the established case background and assessed the culpability and harm based on the UK's sentencing guidelines. Qian Zhimin has been a fugitive for 7 years, which makes crime tracking more challenging due to this cross-border crime; these are aggravating factors considered by the judge when sentencing Qian Zhimin. Qian Zhimin is a first-time offender, has performed well in prison, and cooperated in civil proceedings, which are mitigating factors considered during sentencing.

The sentencing of Qian Zhimin is not the end of the case; how the involved Bitcoin is handled is a matter of greater concern for the affected investors in China. Zheng Jian told a reporter from Caijing that Qian Zhimin's sentencing is merely a criminal outcome of the case, “The matter is not over yet. Over the past few years, Bitcoin has surged by seven to eight times; how will Bitcoin be handled? Should it be returned to the investors?”

Regarding the handling of the involved Bitcoin, Ding Jie analyzed that the subsequent attribution of Bitcoin may involve three procedures: first, the criminal confiscation procedure within the UK; second, the civil recovery procedure within the UK; and third, the possibility of sharing the involved Bitcoin assets between China and the UK in the future. Whether criminal or civil, UK law requires that the interests of the victims be protected first, provided that these victims (fundraising participants) can prove the facts of their victimization according to UK legal standards. Theoretically, after the judicial procedures in the UK are concluded, the asset sharing between the two countries' governments will officially commence. The next step is that fundraising participants within the territory should not only actively cooperate with the cross-border recovery efforts of the relevant Chinese authorities but also those fundraising participants with a very clear chain of evidence and who meet the evidentiary standards of the UK's POCA Act can participate in the UK judicial procedures.

Ding Jie stated, “The ownership of Bitcoin going forward is the real beginning of the cross-border legal game.”