ChainCatcher news, according to the Wen Wei Po report, the Hong Kong police announced data on online investment fraud cases for the first 9 months of 2024. A total of 3,468 cases were reported, involving approximately HKD 2.2 billion, with 35% related to virtual assets. Although this is a decrease compared to the same period last year, the number of cases in October surged by 24% month-on-month, indicating a rebound trend.The largest single loss came from a virtual asset scam, where a female executive of a cryptocurrency company was defrauded of HKD 78.47 million. The police remind that nearly 60% of victims first contacted the scammers through instant messaging software, and 40% of the victims are aged between 40 and 59.From January to October 2023, investment fraud cases reached 5,017, involving approximately HKD 4.93 billion. In September this year, there were 312 cases with an amount of HKD 187 million; in October, it increased to 380 cases, involving HKD 248 million, showing an upward trend. The police urge investors to remain vigilant and beware of virtual asset investment traps.

ChainCatcher news, according to reports from the Shaanxi police, the Public Security Bureau of Jingbian County, Yulin, Shaanxi Province, successfully cracked a virtual currency investment fraud case, arresting 4 criminal suspects with a case value of 410,000 yuan.On July 16, 2024, the victim, Wang, reported to the police that he had been defrauded of 410,000 yuan in cash online under the guise of investing in virtual currency. After receiving the report, the criminal investigation team immediately launched an investigation into the case. Through analysis, assessment, and field investigations, they ultimately identified the identities and locations of the 4 criminal suspects. On July 23, the investigating officers successfully arrested suspects Zhai and Li in Zhengzhou, Henan Province. On July 25, suspects Wang and Li were arrested in Kaifeng, Henan Province.Upon investigation, in July 2024, the victim Wang was chatting online with others when he was recommended to invest in virtual currency on a certain app, with the other party claiming to know a system loophole in the app that guaranteed profits. Tempted by the high returns, Wang invested a total of 410,000 yuan in the app.On July 4, suspect Zhai, seeking to profit from cashing out virtual currency, teamed up with Wang, Li, and another Li to drive to Jingbian County, where they conducted a transaction with Wang to sell virtual currency, taking away his 410,000 yuan in cash and making a profit of over 50,000 yuan.Currently, the 4 suspects Zhai, Wang, Li, and Li are criminally detained for fraud, and the case is under further investigation.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, a 42-year-old British woman Jian Wen was found guilty by a jury in London for helping a Chinese fugitive launder money in a nearly $6 billion investment fraud case from 2017 to 2022.It is reported that Jian Wen was convicted of one count of money laundering, but the jury was unable to reach a verdict on two other charges. Jian Wen is scheduled to be sentenced on May 10.

According to ChainCatcher news, the Financial Times reported that British police seized nearly $1.8 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) from a Chinese investment fraud case. The Southwark Crown Court learned that the defendant Jian Wen is accused of laundering money on behalf of her former employer Yadi Zhang (real name Qian Zhiming).In 2018, British police seized four devices containing over 61,000 Bitcoins, which were valued at £1.4 billion when fully recovered in July 2021. Yadi Zhang stole approximately £5 billion from over 128,000 investors and subsequently converted it into Bitcoin. Yadi Zhang is currently at large, and Jian Wen denies the related charges; she is on trial for allegedly assisting in converting some of Yadi Zhang's Bitcoins into cash, property, jewelry, and other luxury items.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Hong Kong Radio website, the Hong Kong police recently discovered that scammers impersonated investment experts to attract citizens to invest through a virtual asset trading platform with high returns, ultimately unable to retrieve their funds. The police stated that the company involved is named HOUNAX, and they have temporarily received reports from 131 victims, with the amount involved exceeding 110 million Hong Kong dollars, and the amount defrauded in each case ranging from 12,000 to 4 million Hong Kong dollars.Police Commercial Crime Bureau Superintendent Chan Wai-ki stated that the company involved has been operating since the beginning of this year. The HOUNAX website uses traditional Chinese, and the user login page is also preset with the +852 area code, indicating that the target of the scam is likely Hong Kong residents. Its website is still operational, and the site remains valid, with citizens even able to download the mobile application of the platform.Chan Wai-ki mentioned that most victims reported the case this month. The Securities and Futures Commission has listed HOUNAX on the list of unlicensed companies and suspicious websites as of November 1, categorizing it as a suspicious virtual asset trading platform, and indicated that it falsely claims to cooperate with a financial institution.ChainCatcher previously reported that the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission announced a recent update, adding a suspicious virtual asset trading platform named HOUNAX.

ChainCatcher News, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged Neil Chandran and his associates with defrauding investors using fake blockchain technology. The SEC claims that the group falsely stated they had obtained valuable blockchain technology and that selling this technology would yield investors over 500,000 times their investment returns. However, in reality, the money raised from investors was used to purchase luxury cars, real estate, and a boat for the private use of Neil Chandran and others, and was also diverted to his other businesses.It is reported that Neil Chandran owns multiple companies and has been incarcerated since last year for fraud related to the same case. Neil Chandran defrauded investors of over $45 million by claiming to share information about pending transactions related to the technology through the intermediary "CoinDeal." (source link)