Crypto Assets Era's Occupational Crimes: New Forms and New Challenges

Recently, several cases of occupational crimes involving Crypto Assets have attracted widespread social attention. These cases not only expose the illegal behaviors of some public officials and corporate employees but also highlight the new role of Crypto Assets in the illegal transfer of benefits. This article will analyze several significant cases that have occurred recently, exploring the new characteristics of occupational crimes in the era of Crypto Assets and the new challenges faced by law enforcement agencies.

Recent Major Coin-Related Occupational Crime Cases Review

Securities Regulatory Commission senior officials involved in coin case

Not long ago, an announcement regarding the former director of the Science and Technology Supervision Bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission's serious disciplinary violations and illegal activities attracted widespread attention. The official was accused of abusing regulatory power to seek improper benefits for others in areas such as the business expansion of information technology system service agencies and the procurement of software and hardware, and using virtual currency for power-for-money transactions.

According to our country's criminal law, the behavior of state workers who take advantage of their positions to solicit or illegally receive property from others for the benefit of others constitutes the crime of bribery. A case can be filed when the amount of bribery reaches 30,000 yuan, and the prison term and fines increase with the amount of bribery.

Beijing 140 million yuan virtual currency embezzlement case

In December 2023, the Beijing Procuratorate disclosed a case of embezzlement involving 140 million yuan. Between 2020 and 2021, an employee of a technology company, Feng, took advantage of his position and conspired with others to defraud the company of over 140 million yuan in service provider rewards.

The suspect subsequently converted the illicit funds into Crypto Assets through multiple overseas virtual coin trading platforms and attempted to conceal the source and nature of the funds using a "tumbler." After the incident, Feng voluntarily returned 92 coins of Bitcoin, totaling approximately 89 million yuan in recovered illicit funds.

Since Feng is not a state worker, his actions are suspected of constituting the crime of embezzlement. According to the latest revised standards for filing and prosecution, an amount of 30,000 yuan for embezzlement is sufficient to file a case, which is a reduction from the previous threshold of 60,000 yuan.

Key Information Interpretation of Coin-Related Criminal Cases

These cases reveal some new characteristics of occupational crimes in the era of Crypto Assets:

1. The investigative capabilities of law enforcement have been significantly enhanced. Even if criminals use multiple trading platforms and mixers, law enforcement can still successfully trace the flow of funds. This indicates that tools such as mixers are no longer sufficient to effectively conceal criminal activities.

2. Recovering illicit funds still relies heavily on the cooperation of the suspects. Due to the special nature of Crypto Assets, if the funds are transferred abroad or stored in cold wallets, law enforcement agencies often find it difficult to recover them directly, requiring the active cooperation of the suspects.

3. Crypto Assets have become a new type of interest transfer tool. Their anonymity and cross-border characteristics make them an "ideal" bribery medium in the eyes of some, but at the same time, their traceability in transactions also serves as powerful evidence of crime.

Conclusion

With the development of the Crypto Assets market and the integration with traditional financial systems, it is expected that cases of occupational crimes involving Crypto Assets may increase. This poses new challenges for law enforcement agencies, requiring them to enhance their understanding of Crypto Assets and upgrade their technical means. At the same time, this serves as a warning to public officials and corporate executives that Crypto Assets are not a safe haven to evade the law, and they should not harbor delusions of escaping legal boundaries.