Update, Aug. 22, 12:54 pm UTC: This article has been revised to include CoinW exchange’s statement regarding the indictment.
Taiwanese prosecutors have reportedly charged 14 individuals in what they claim is the largest cryptocurrency money laundering case in the country’s history, involving over 1,500 victims and exceeding $70 million in illicit funds.
The Shilin District Prosecutor’s office indicted these 14 on counts related to fraud, money laundering, and organized crime, requesting the confiscation of 1.275 billion New Taiwan dollars ($39.8 million), allegedly acquired from victims through fraudulent means, according to a local media report from UDN.
Moreover, prosecutors requested the confiscation of an additional 640,000 USDt (USDT), undisclosed Bitcoin (BTC) and Tron (TRX) holdings, over $1.8 million in cash, and two luxury vehicles. They reportedly seized bank deposits totaling $3.13 million, with the remainder of the proceeds expected to be recovered later.
The group faced charges for laundering $71.9 million collected from unsuspecting victims in cash, converted into foreign currency and transferred abroad to acquire USDT through the Taiwanese cryptocurrency exchange BiXiang Technology.
The prosecution provided a money laundering flow chart alongside the indictment to depict the group’s operations.
Authorities initiated the investigation in April when the 14 individuals were taken into custody, including ringleader Shi Qiren, who may face a 25-year prison sentence as the main suspect behind the scam and for refusing to plead guilty, reported UDN.
Related: Coinbase data leak could put users in physical danger: TechCrunch founder
Over 1,500 victims defrauded through an unlicensed crypto exchange
According to prosecutors, starting in 2024, Qiren, his wife, and a manager named Yang collaborated to establish 40 locations across Taiwan under the brands “CoinW” and “CoinThink Technology Co., Ltd.,” gathering millions in franchise fees before using a partner firm to create deposit machines to collect cash from victims.
They allegedly claimed to be the sole firm authorized by Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission, defrauding 1,539 individuals out of $71.9 million through franchise fees and cash collection machines.
The group also suffered from a secondary fraud, as another suspect named Gu allegedly deceived Shi into paying $93,000 with false promises of securing Anti-Money Laundering registration.
CoinW denied any connection to the money laundering case, emphasizing that “the company’s management has never engaged in any illegal money laundering or fraudulent activities.”
The cryptocurrency exchange stated it would seek to dispose of any accounts or transactions tied to fraud or money laundering in accordance with the law, as noted in a release on Friday.
Related: Investors brace for Powell speech as Bitcoin dips near $112K
The indictment was announced just days after a crypto influencer received a year-long prison sentence for money laundering and wire fraud after deceiving two major cloud computing firms in a large-scale cryptojacking scheme.
A month prior, a Russian individual allegedly laundered $530 million through US banks and crypto exchanges using USDT to facilitate payments for Russian clients linked to sanctioned banks, as reported by Cointelegraph on July 17.
Magazine: AI drone ‘hellscape’ plan for Taiwan, LLMs too dumb to destroy humanity
