London Court Finds Woman Guilty of Helping Fugitive Launder Bitcoins from Chinese Investment Scam

A former takeaway worker, Jian Wen, 42, was convicted of money laundering at Southwark Crown Court in London. Prosecutors alleged that Wen helped a fugitive Chinese national, Yadi Zhang, launder bitcoin that was converted from a £5 billion ($6.3 billion) investment fraud committed in China between 2014-2017.

Zhang is accused of stealing from over 128,000 investors in China. Wen is alleged to have aided Zhang in concealing the source of the stolen funds by transferring the proceeds, which had been converted into cryptocurrency, into cash, luxury goods, and real estate purchases. At the time of her arrest in 2018, Wen was in possession of thousands of bitcoins worth over £3 billion today.

The conviction stems from allegations that Wen sold 92 bitcoins, then worth over £2 million, to Dubai-based adviser Michael Burke. Burke allegedly transferred the funds into bank accounts and prepaid cards for Zhang to access, including depositing money to purchase flats in Dubai.

While Wen was acquitted of 10 money laundering charges in a previous trial in 2022, jurors could not reach a verdict on three counts. At this recent retrial, she maintained that she did not knowingly assist in money laundering and was simply helping Zhang as an acquaintance. However, prosecutors showed she possessed access details for cryptocurrency wallets containing over £1.4 billion in bitcoin seized by authorities. Wen will be sentenced for this conviction on May 10th.