"Police said the investigation into Zhimin Qian, 47, led to officers recovering devices holding 61,000 Bitcoin in the largest cryptocurrency seizure in the U.K. Qian, dubbed "cryptoqueen" by British media, was arrested in April 2024 after spending years evading the authorities and living an "extravagant" lifestyle in Europe, staying in luxury hotels across the continent and buying fine jewelry and watches, prosecutors said."
"Authorities said she stored the illegally obtained funds in Bitcoin assets. When she attracted the attention of Chinese authorities, Qian fled to the U.K. under a fake identity. Once in London, police said she rented a "lavish" house for over 17,000 pounds ($23,000) per month, and tried but failed to buy multimillion pound properties in a bid to convert the Bitcoin."
Zhimin Qian ran a pyramid scheme between 2014 and 2017 that lured more than 128,000 people to invest, including many who invested life savings and pensions. Investigators recovered devices holding 61,000 Bitcoin, representing the largest cryptocurrency seizure in the U.K. Qian fled China under a fake identity and lived an extravagant lifestyle in Europe and London, renting a lavish house and attempting to convert Bitcoin into property. Notes recovered showed grandiose aspirations, including an intention to become monarch of Liberland. Qian pleaded guilty to money laundering offenses and transferring and possessing crypto assets and received a sentence exceeding 11 years.
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