According to the prosecutor's office, the scammers deceived more than 10,000 victims from various regions of China, including the provinces of Jiangsu, Guizhou and Hunan. The criminals guaranteed investors double the profit when investing in the FIL cryptocurrency, but the scammers stole the funds raised. They received a prison sentence of three to five years, along with conditional release. In addition, violators were fined in the amount of 210,000 (about $28,860) to 250,000 yuan (about $34,360).
Cryptocurrency trading and mining are prohibited in China, so the authorities apply strict measures against illegal financial transactions within the country. Law enforcement officers advised Chinese citizens to exercise caution in order to protect themselves from such fraudulent schemes in the future and not lose money. The police warned that they will continue to identify cases of cryptocurrency fraud in the country in order to protect depositors from illegal investment schemes.
Recall that in August 2023, the Chinese People's Court of Pingnan District began open hearings on the case of five organizers of the fraudulent Filecoin cryptocurrency mining scheme. During this fraudulent scheme, they managed to raise 600 million yuan (about $82.4 million).