According to police, the cryptocurrency was seized from a gaming platform that was used to attract and defraud players.
The Public Security Bureau of Shayang District of Jingmen City, Hubei Province, said the case was opened in July 2021. A county resident said he lost more than 100,000 yuan (about $15,000) gambling on his cell phone, which “ruined his family”. After an inspection, law enforcers found: the platform, which was registered abroad, was using cryptocurrency for payments.
The criminals had a turnover of 400 billion yuan (about $62 billion). And the number of defrauded citizens could be as high as 50,000.
“It’s an uphill battle.. We overcame many challenges and successfully met an unprecedented challenge,” the police rejoiced.
Residents of China are diligently circumventing the country’s laws banning the free circulation of cryptocurrencies. It was recently reported that users from the PRC, who are banned from enrolling in the Worldcoin crypto project, have resorted to buying biometric data from third parties in Africa with the hope of receiving bonuses after the project’s launch;
A recent investigation by journalists found that mainland Chinese residents are purchasing cryptocurrencies through firms in Hong Kong. In most cases, these actions occur anonymously.