China has successfully extradited a suspect identified only by the surname Zhang from Thailand. Zhang is accused of leading a massive $14 billion pyramid scheme involving cryptocurrency.
China’s request for Zhang’s extradition was made under the bilateral treaty between China and Thailand. The Thai Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the extradition on May 21, 2024, and the Thai government confirmed this decision on August 14. Zhang was subsequently extradited to China on August 20.
China’s Ministry of Public Security announced that a special task force, dubbed “Hunting Fox,” was formed by Chinese and Thai authorities to capture Zhang. He was extradited to China on Wednesday.
This successful operation was achieved through the coordinated efforts of China’s Ministry of Public Security, the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, and Thai law enforcement agencies.
Zhang allegedly orchestrated the scheme through a group known as “MBI Group,” starting in 2012. The scheme lured over 10 million members into paying fees ranging from 700 yuan ($98) to 245,000 yuan ($34,300) to obtain memberships, which included cryptocurrency offerings. Authorities estimate the total funds involved in the scheme exceeded 100 billion yuan ($14 billion).
– Advertisement –
The police in Chongqing, a major city in Southwestern China, began investigating Zhang in November 2020. In March 2021, Interpol’s Chinese branch issued a red notice for his arrest. Zhang was eventually apprehended by Thai authorities in July 2022, and a Thai court ruled in May this year to extradite him to China.
China banned cryptocurrency trading on the mainland in 2021, yet many investors have attempted to circumvent the regulations. In May, Chinese authorities dismantled an underground bank that used the USDT stablecoin for foreign currency exchanges, involving transactions worth at least 13.8 billion yuan ($1.9 billion).
The investigation revealed that the criminal group used domestic accounts to receive and transfer funds, conducting over-the-counter crypto transactions to service various companies. These included South Korean purchasing agents, cross-border e-commerce platforms, and import-export trade firms, enabling them to bypass China’s stringent capital control policies.
Earlier this week, China’s top legal bodies expanded the legal framework to include the use of cryptocurrencies for transferring illicit funds as a recognized money laundering method, streamlining the investigation and prosecution of crypto-related money laundering cases.
