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Crimewatch Roadshow - Season 23 - Episode 03: The Crypto Con Woman
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TVTranscript
00:12Hello and welcome to Wednesday's show.
00:29We have had lots of calls this week about our appeals already, especially on that shooting
00:33of a nine-year-old girl on Monday.
00:36Remember, you can watch that again on iPlayer or our website.
00:40Today do you recognise this man?
00:42Police want to speak to him after he duped an elderly man out of his life savings.
00:47And we got more money crimes, this time with the detectives who hauled the biggest Bitcoin
00:51seizure in the world in a fraud orchestrated by the so-called crypto queen.
00:57Police!
00:58Police!
00:59Police!
01:01The amount of Bitcoin seized in this case is enormous.
01:06Police!
01:06Police!
01:08You can't comprehend it.
01:10She defrauded 128,000 victims and amassed £5 billion in Bitcoin.
01:18It is astonishing.
01:19And we'll also be hearing how the ill-gotten gain seized from criminals is being redistributed
01:25to initiatives designed to keep our communities safer.
01:29As always, our team and the officers from today's programme are backstage ready to take your calls.
01:35All the ways you can get in touch can be found by following that QR code at the bottom of
01:40the screen, which will take you through to our homepage.
01:43Otherwise, the number to call is 08000 468999 or you can text us on 63399.
01:49Start up with the word crime, leave a space, then write your message.
01:53Or if you prefer, you can email us.
01:55The address is cwl at bbc.co.uk.
02:00Now, you may have seen our first case in the news today as detectives are relaunching their
02:04appeal into the murder of 25-year-old Melanie Hall.
02:08He went out with friends one night and was never seen again.
02:13Melanie was a loving child, very trusting, always seeing the best of someone.
02:19The two girls were very close, actually.
02:21There was only 23 months between them.
02:25So it was unusual for them to be parted.
02:29I can remember the last time I saw Mel and I can see her clearly in the doorway at my
02:34mum and dad's house.
02:35And she was wearing this pink flowery skirt with this beautiful blonde hair.
02:39And that is my lasting memory of her.
02:41She looked beautiful.
02:43In 1996, Melanie Hall vanished.
02:51Melanie Hall went missing back in June.
02:54The 25-year-old graduate went missing from a nightclub in Bath.
02:58The police and her family have concluded that she's been murdered.
03:04Now, 30 years after she was last seen alive,
03:07police are making a renewed appeal for information about what happened to her.
03:16On June the 8th, 1996, Melanie had gone out to Cadillac nightclub in Bath.
03:24But the 25-year-old clerical worker never returned home.
03:29I did feel right from the very first day that something has happened to her.
03:36And as the days have gone by and the weeks and the months, I'm quite sure something serious has happened
03:44to her.
03:47Then, 13 years later, in 2009, a skull and a set of bones were discovered by workmen clearing undergrowth near
03:56the M5 in Gloucestershire.
03:59As they were conducting the excavation process, we found a gold ring, which was quite distinctive, and it appeared to
04:07still be on a finger bone of the remains.
04:12I think as soon as soon as I saw it, then I realised that it was Melanie's.
04:19Tragically, Melanie had been murdered and left by the side of the road.
04:28We had a young, vibrant daughter, happy for the future in front of her.
04:38Today, we have a bag of bones discarded on the side of the motorbike.
04:45Detectives at the time hoped that analysis of new DNA found at the scene would lead to a suspect.
04:53But after years of degradation in the undergrowth, there was limited viable forensic evidence.
05:00I never really tried to sort of think what had happened, because I just felt that was making things worse.
05:08It's difficult, but I just put it in a box and put the lid on it.
05:14I've asked the question why many times, and I think that's a question I'd like to get answered.
05:26I don't know.
05:27I don't know.
05:27Now, 30 years later, Detective Chief Inspector Ben Lavender is once again asking for information from the public to finally
05:35catch Melanie's killer.
05:38Melanie disappeared on the 8th of June 1996, which was the opening day of the Euros finals, where England played
05:46Switzerland.
05:48Melanie had spent the day with her boyfriend and they all went out together with her friends and went to
05:54a barbecue that evening.
05:57From the barbecue, they went into the Cadillacs nightclub.
06:04They had a pleasant evening until Melanie was seen dancing with another man, and so Melanie's boyfriend decided to leave
06:11the club.
06:13The last people to see Melanie alive was at ten past one in the morning on the 9th of June,
06:20and that was her friends who said goodbye to her and left the club thinking that she was going to
06:25go home with her boyfriend.
06:28After that, there were no verified sightings of Melanie.
06:34It's a strong possibility that she left Cadillacs with her killer.
06:38And we know that she collected her coat, so we're confident that she left the club.
06:43But what we don't know is whether she got into someone's car.
06:51The discovery of Melanie's remains in 2009 was a massive jump forward for the investigation because we finally knew what
06:59had happened to Melanie.
07:02What we didn't know is how she got there, why she was murdered and who killed her.
07:11To this day, Melanie's family live in hope.
07:17If someone was apprehended and convicted of Melanie's murder, that won't bring closure.
07:23But what it will do, it will mean that the last thing that we've been able to do for Melanie
07:29is to bring or to see her killers brought to justice.
07:34And we believe eventually we will get a result.
07:40Me and Mel were just young women in our 20s then and now I'm fast approaching 60 and Daddy's 82
07:48and I worry how much longer will we have?
07:51Will we ever know if we don't get our answers soon?
07:59As we heard there, a family just desperate for answers.
08:03I'm joined now by DCI Ben Lavender from Avon and Somerset Police who you saw in the film there.
08:07Good to have you with us here in the studio, Ben.
08:10This has been a mystery for 30 years.
08:12What are you hoping to achieve from this fresh appeal today?
08:17Yeah, thank you.
08:17As you can see, this is almost 30 years now since Melanie went missing.
08:22And we just really want to bring some answers to a family.
08:25They're still deeply upset by what happened, want to know what happened.
08:29And so I'm really hoping today that someone may come forward with some information that takes the investigation forward.
08:35Fingers crossed. So let's start with just reminding us where and when you'd like viewers to cast their minds back
08:41to.
08:41Yeah, so Melanie went out on the 8th of June in 1996.
08:45And that was the opening night of the Euros finals, which was held in England.
08:49England were playing Switzerland and Melanie went to the Cadillacs nightclub, which is on Walcott Street in Bath.
08:55She went there later in the evening with her friends and that was the last place that she was seen
09:01alive.
09:02We can just see the Cadillacs club there on the map.
09:06Just talk us through what Melanie was wearing at the time.
09:09Yeah, sure. So she was wearing a silk blue dress.
09:13We're confident this is an exact replica of the dress that she was wearing on the evening.
09:18She had the black shoes that you see there and a black handbag with the silver drop earrings.
09:24And she was wearing a white jacket.
09:27And these items have never been recovered.
09:30Now, it was some 15 years later, wasn't it, Ben, that Melanie's remains were discovered.
09:35And this did throw up some fresh clues for you, didn't it?
09:39Yeah, absolutely. So sadly, Melanie's remains were found on the side of the M5 motorway slip road at Junction 14,
09:45which is just north of Fulfield and Thornbury.
09:48And Melanie was found without any of the items that I've previously described.
09:53And she was wrapped in black bin liners with blue rope.
09:59And as you can see on the screen, these may be really significant.
10:04Talk us through the keys as well.
10:06Yeah. So there were some Ford car keys found nearby to Melanie's body.
10:11And it's obviously unusual to get three similar, the same keys all on one key ring.
10:16You never found the corresponding car or the owner of the keys either, did you?
10:21No, we didn't. We've done lots of tests on the keys and previous appeals.
10:25And we still don't know to this day where those keys came from.
10:29And they may be really important.
10:30Who do you want to hear from today?
10:32Yeah, so it's really important for us today to hear from anyone who may have been in Cadillac's nightclub
10:38or is really concerned about someone with the three things, really.
10:43The fact that Melanie was found on the side of the M5 at the Cadillac's nightclub itself and the blue
10:49rope and the bags.
10:50I think if someone can cast their mind and that all those three things mean something, we really, really want
10:56to hear from them.
10:57Absolutely. And finally, there is a Crimestoppers rewarding connection to this case, isn't there?
11:02Yes, there is. Crimestoppers have been really supportive of this investigation over the years.
11:06And they've put forward a £20,000 reward for any information that leads to the conviction of the killer of
11:13Melanie.
11:13And so if people prefer to report this anonymously through Crimestoppers, then that's available as well.
11:19Ben, thanks again for coming in and telling us more about this case.
11:22Fingers crossed somebody does come forward, as I say.
11:25You can find that link on our website or get in touch using the contacts below if you have any
11:30information to share.
11:32Thanks, Michelle.
11:33I'm now with Police Sergeant Mike Rogers from Northamptonshire Police, who needs your help to find this man.
11:39This is Jasveer Singh. He was one of our wanted faces on the series last time.
11:47This is an interesting case, Mike, because you know who it is that you need to find.
11:52You just don't know where he is. What's his suspected involvement in?
11:56Absolutely. So this is unusual because it's a fraud committed by someone who's practising as a priest
12:02against one of his parishioners calling him out of his life savings of £114,000.
12:07The pair met in India, where our victim went on holiday with his family, and Jasveer Singh was a priest
12:13out there.
12:14They struck up a friendship, and upon returning to England, the victim returned to his own temple,
12:21who were looking for a priest, recommended Jasveer Singh, and they sponsored him to come to the United Kingdom,
12:27where he practised at the victim's local temple.
12:31They continued their friendship, during which the victim's behaviour changed massively,
12:40and it transpired that Jasveer Singh had been telling him a pack of lies regarding a dispute in India over
12:47property and land,
12:49a legal dispute, which the victim believed, and resulted in handing over his life savings of £114,000.
12:55Absolutely. Staggering amount of money, isn't it? So how did you as the police get involved in this?
13:01Well, it was reported to us by the victim's family, but not before they themselves tried to resolve it,
13:06and the victim's son even flew out to India in order to check out the story given by Jasveer Singh,
13:12which was deemed to be a pack of lies. So once he was back in England, they reported to the
13:17police,
13:17and we took up the investigation.
13:20OK. I mean, it's obviously had a huge impact on not just the victim, but the victim's family as well.
13:24They've actually given us this statement.
13:27After a lifetime of hard work, our father was finally going to slow down and enjoy time with his family.
13:33The impact of this was devastating. Today, our once strong and active dad is now completely bed-bound,
13:41and our mum is his full-time carer. We are speaking out to seek justice and to warn others that
13:46vulnerable parents can be targeted.
13:50I mean, they're really strong words there, Mike, aren't they?
13:52And they actually believe that the frailty of the victim now is at least in part down to the actions
13:59of what happened with this man.
14:00Yeah, absolutely. Prior to meeting Jasveer Singh, he was a robust individual, took pride in himself, his family, left his
14:08garden,
14:09and it completely changed. Upon meeting Jasveer Singh, his behaviour changed and resulted in having a stroke,
14:17which, you know, probably brought on by the stress of the situation.
14:21The family are absolutely devastated because he's a shadow of his former self,
14:25and not only that, it's the financial impact as well of having his life savings taken.
14:29Yeah, it's massive, isn't it? Now, he has been arrested. He was charged.
14:35He didn't get to court, though. What happened?
14:38Yes, CPS authorised charges after a lengthy investigation,
14:42and he was due to attend court to face what he did. Unfortunately, he didn't turn up,
14:47and he's been wanted ever since. We've been unable to locate him.
14:52We get close sometimes, but he's evaded capture,
14:55so we're keen to get hold of him to put him before the courts to get justice for the family.
14:59Now, he's evaded capture, but he hasn't disappeared off the face of the earth,
15:02because you've found him in cyberspace, haven't you? Here he is.
15:05This is him actually working as a music artist, you've discovered.
15:09Absolutely. He's going under the alias of Cobra Jet, producing music videos,
15:14and appears to be quite popular on YouTube, with over a quarter of a million likes on his videos.
15:19He's also selling his music on Amazon as well.
15:22So, he is out there, and it appears to be quite a following.
15:25So, people do know who he is and where he is.
15:27And just finally, this is a targeted appeal, especially to the Sikh community around the West Midlands,
15:32perhaps, who knows where this man could be. That's what you want to hear from?
15:35Yes, we think he's in England. Well, we know he's in England still, in the region of the Midlands, we
15:40believe.
15:41And we do believe he's being protected by people.
15:43So, we urge people to come forward for justice for the family and also protect other people for becoming victims
15:49of him.
15:50Mike, thank you. We hope we can give you some answers today.
15:52If you know anything that can help with this case, all the ways to contact us are on the screen
15:57below.
15:58Now, from one con artist to another. In our series of exclusive films on the biggest crimes across the UK,
16:04we have an incredible story that you might have actually read about.
16:08It involves one mastermind, one con artist, 128,000 victims and £5 billion worth of Bitcoin.
16:19The figures didn't add up.
16:21I've got a search warrant to search your house.
16:26We were shocked. The amounts involved were enormous.
16:33At its peak, it was worth just under £6 billion.
16:38Police! Police!
16:48The landscape of economic crime is shifting.
16:53The Met have a long history of investigating money laundering and fraud.
16:59And this is just an application of new technology to old crime.
17:05In late 2018, police were contacted by solicitors dealing with the sale of a £24 million house in Totteridge Common
17:14London,
17:14being paid for with Bitcoin by a lady called Jian Wen.
17:20Solicitors were suspicious of where the Bitcoin had come from.
17:24I could see that Miss Wen had received a gift of 3,000 Bitcoins from somebody called Yadie Zhang.
17:31And the claim was that these Bitcoins had been mined.
17:37Cryptocurrency mining is a legal process that creates new Bitcoins and keeps the Bitcoin network secure.
17:45Bitcoin mining comprises two parts.
17:47The first part is moving Bitcoins around and a complex mathematical sum is needed to do that.
17:55The second part is whoever manages to do that first gets rewarded with a certain number of Bitcoins.
18:01Those Bitcoins are new, fresh minted and they're added to the circulation and they're in the miner's wallet.
18:09Police examined the public ledger of Bitcoin transactions known as a blockchain and this suggested a different story to Wunds.
18:18We could see that the Bitcoins weren't mined.
18:21They'd come from a crypto exchange rather than a first generation mining.
18:25It seemed to be suspicious.
18:27The figures didn't add up.
18:29And because it was suspicious, I applied to the court and got an account freezing order,
18:34which meant that the money in the solicitors account was frozen.
18:38With suspicions raised, police delved further into Wund and discovered she was renting a mansion in Hampstead for £17,000
18:47a month.
18:48She had also just given solicitors an £850,000 deposit for the house sale.
18:55They could see that money was coming from an unknown source
18:59and was being split into smaller payments in an attempt to avoid bank controls.
19:05It appeared more likely that Miss Wund was involved in money laundering.
19:09So I obtained a search warrant and on the 31st of October, myself and the team went along and searched
19:17the address.
19:19Hello, I'm DC Ryan from the police.
19:23I've got a search warrant to search your house.
19:25From what covers?
19:27I'm looking for documents and other documents and other items.
19:31Would you mind stepping out so we can go and have a chat and I'll show you the warrant,
19:34because you get a copy of it anyway.
19:35No, what documents are you looking for?
19:37We searched the address and found hundreds of thousands of pounds.
19:42There was 20,000 here, 30,000 there.
19:47Some of it was in nice bags wrapped up in tape.
19:51Others were in handbags.
19:53There was cash almost everywhere.
19:55In total, it was a touch over £300,000 we found at the address.
20:02Hello madam, I appreciate you're in bed.
20:04I've just got to record down your name.
20:06During the raid, police discovered another woman was also living at the address.
20:13Can you spell that at all for me?
20:15Along with the seized cash, they took the contents of a safety deposit box,
20:21laptops and hard drives, which were all heavily encrypted.
20:26We suspected the bitcoins were from crime.
20:29We had no evidence at that stage.
20:31When they interviewed Jen Wan, she said she was in fact working for Yadi Zhang,
20:38the second woman the police found at the Hampstead property.
20:42Ms. Wen had given an account to the solicitors and banks that the bitcoins were mined by Ms. Zhang
20:49and that she'd received a gift of 3,000 of them.
20:52This was confirmed in her interview and she believed, in her words, that the bitcoins were mined.
20:57However, we know that that's not the case.
21:00So, she was either lying or being misled by Ms. Zhang.
21:05The suspicion was that these were from crime.
21:09Police tried to contact Yadi Zhang, but she had disappeared.
21:13Then, a breakthrough.
21:16In July 2021, police discovered Yadi Zhang was in fact called Chen Zemin.
21:23She was a fugitive from China.
21:28Chen Zemin was wanted in China for her role in orchestrating a truly gigantic investment fraud.
21:38She had defrauded 128,400 people between 2014 and 2017.
21:46Investors were promised massive returns and cajoled and convinced into investing more and more money into the scheme.
21:56She would attend and lead large sales conferences and she had a almost supernatural aura to her,
22:04which she cultivated very intentionally.
22:07She made sure to wear a mask and really took quite a lot of steps to conceal her identity,
22:13whilst also using her charisma to attract people into the scheme.
22:19There was no evidence of this company really creating anything that would have been capable of generating any wealth.
22:25And what there was a lot of evidence of was Chen Zemin spending a lot of investors' money purchasing Bitcoin.
22:34In other words, a scam akin to a Ponzi scheme.
22:38In April 2017, Chinese authorities began to investigate Chen Zemin,
22:44which is when she fled the country, taking the stolen Bitcoin with her.
22:49Chen Zemin arrived in the UK in mid-September 2017, having flown first class.
22:57She arrived with only hand luggage.
23:00One of the first things she did was open an account at Harrods
23:03and in the next three months spent about £90,000 on various luxury items.
23:11She recruited Jian Wen as a personal assistant.
23:15Jian Wen, after meeting Jian Zemin, saw a massive change in her lifestyle.
23:22Prior to Jian Zemin's arrival in the UK, Wen was working in a Chinese takeaway in South East London.
23:29They went on a little trip to Europe, Germany and Switzerland, going to expensive jewellery shops,
23:36stealing all the sites, just spending lots of money really.
23:41Jian Zemin was very paranoid and very security aware.
23:45She would deliberately avoid to put her name to anything.
23:50And any dealings, she used Jian Wen as the front person to take those things forward.
23:59They agreed to rent the manor house property, which was £17,500 a month.
24:06Wen's name was on the tenancy for that.
24:08So she's moved from living above a takeaway to moving into a multi-million pound house in Hampstead.
24:16Wan's main responsibility was to convert Bitcoin into cash.
24:21We can see from the text messages on Wen's phone that she met with a guy called Ricky
24:27and they'd often meet and exchange crypto for cash, £20,000, £30,000, £40,000 at a time.
24:34She met in supermarket car parks when told the buyer of the Bitcoin to avoid parking in front of CCTV.
24:42So that shows very much the clandestine nature that they were operating in.
24:47Wan claimed she didn't know that Bitcoin had come from criminal means, but her actions were suspicious.
24:54She searches for the money laundering act and also countries that extradite to China.
25:04None of this is something that an innocent person would do.
25:09It's always really exciting when you get to that stage of an investigation.
25:23Well, it's an almost unimaginable amount of money.
25:27But you may ask what happens to any cash or assets from what are seized from criminals?
25:32Well, we can tell you a sizable portion of it is often invested back into communities and given to charities.
25:39We're now with Scott Jenkinson, who runs Youth Sheds, a charity that benefits from such funding.
25:45Really good to have you with us and to find out more about Youth Sheds.
25:48How did it all begin for you, Scott?
25:50Back in 2017, in a place called the Havod in Denby, I had the privilege of working with a small
25:57group of young people.
25:58And we worked together on a young person's response to antisocial behaviour.
26:04And the first Youth Shed was born.
26:08And it sort of spiralled from there.
26:11Spiralled upwards.
26:1212 Youth Sheds across North Wales now.
26:13Yeah, we've got 12 Sheds across North Wales and South Wales now.
26:18And the vision is a Youth Shed in every town.
26:20A community of young people connected across counties doing wonderful things for their community.
26:27Fantastic.
26:28So it's gone from nothing to 12.
26:30Yeah.
26:30This is one of your sheds, but this shed has wheels, Scott.
26:33It's got wheels.
26:33This one's got wheels.
26:34So tell me about this.
26:35Why the bus?
26:35What does it do?
26:36This is affectionately known as Betsy.
26:38I am Betsy.
26:39Yeah, so Betsy is often our first point of contact with the young people that we want to work with.
26:45This will go out onto the streets and we'll do things like VR.
26:49We'll do engagement on it.
26:49We can see that there.
26:50They're the goggles, aren't they?
26:51The white goggles we can see now.
26:53VR, what can they do with those?
26:54Well, we've actually made films with them with our young people on county lines and knife crime.
26:59So we can use it for education, but it's also a good engagement tool.
27:02Yeah.
27:04And yeah, this vehicle was actually used to be a project called the bus stop and then that finished.
27:10And we saw it in a car park.
27:12And I got one of my young people, Sonia, to put out one of our logos on it.
27:16And we sent a cheeky email saying, look good as a youth shed.
27:20And they could connect and kindly said, come and get it.
27:23That's fantastic.
27:24Yeah.
27:24And you've had some real success.
27:26Yeah.
27:26I mean, to the standard of Prince William has come to visit your youth shed.
27:30Yes, yeah.
27:30He came just at the end of last year.
27:32Oh, look at this.
27:33He came to visit and he met probably about 30 odd of our young people.
27:39And yeah, he was amazing.
27:40And it was just a beautiful day for the young people to celebrate what they do.
27:43And we know this means so much to you, Scott.
27:47I mean, this is a personal mission for you, isn't it?
27:50I'm a Christian.
27:52But before that, I was a heroin addict.
27:55I was street homeless.
27:57I was in and out of prison.
27:58And I had an encounter in 2008 that turned my life upside down.
28:02And now, you know, I'm no longer an addict.
28:05I'm a husband, I'm a father, I'm a son.
28:07And my faith, I say, is the fuel.
28:09And this is quite literally the vehicle that, you know, I've got a personal mission against
28:17County Lines.
28:18County Lines destroys lives.
28:20It destroys children's lives.
28:22And I hope and I see that youth sheds can help young people with what I got from my faith,
28:29was identity, purpose and belonging.
28:31And I believe if we can build that in young people, a pro-social identity, a sense of belonging,
28:38a place in the community where they feel valued, and that it's their community,
28:43I believe that we can really impact some lives.
28:47And it's through things like this, your community, your choice, from the Police and Crime Commissioner,
28:51Andy Dumbobbin in North Wales.
28:53You know, it's a perfect example of using that money,
28:56because the members of the public vote for the project.
29:00So the community gets a say in where the money goes, and then we use that money then
29:06for the young people to do good projects in their community.
29:10Well, let's talk about that.
29:11Yes.
29:11Part of the funding, then.
29:12Because there is money that's come, that's been part of this project,
29:16that has come from criminals initially.
29:18From criminals, yeah.
29:19And you've been able to bid to put it into a massively good cause like this.
29:23Yeah.
29:23How do you feel about that money sort of doing a full circle?
29:26I love it.
29:26I love it because my life's come full circle.
29:29From addict, criminal to teacher, and now chief shed planter, I call this one.
29:35I'm not a CEO.
29:36I don't like a CEO.
29:37But now, you know, we've had young people come to this van who,
29:40it's been their first part of contact.
29:42A young girl called Saskia, didn't have a voice.
29:45Now she's got such a voice, she challenges us about what we're doing in the community
29:48for young people.
29:49That's perfect.
29:50Yeah.
29:51Another lad, Caelan, was referred by police, and he's just become a police cadet.
29:56Oh, brilliant.
29:56Three years down the line.
29:58Another lad, Owen, he's designed that t-shirt at the back there as part of our...
30:02So that t-shirt we see inside the van there.
30:04That's actually...
30:06That logo was designed by one of your youngsters.
30:09Our OG, as we call him.
30:10Was he?
30:11He's absolutely flourishing now, you know, but really didn't flourish in education.
30:17And, you know, so...
30:18But we met him on the van, we started a relationship, we've mentored, we've journeyed together.
30:24Yeah.
30:24And two weeks ago, he actually taught me mountain biking.
30:28Oh, really?
30:28You know what I mean?
30:29That's what we want to see.
30:31Yeah.
30:31Young people.
30:33Not necessarily coming full circle, but just being the best version of themselves.
30:37Oh, Scott.
30:37And imagine that in every town, a youth shed in every town.
30:40Connected.
30:41I can see it.
30:42Yeah.
30:42Connected.
30:43County lines for good.
30:44Well done, Scott.
30:45Great project.
30:46Well done.
30:47Fantastic work you're doing.
30:48Really appreciate you telling us more.
30:50It's brilliant.
30:50And actually, these initiatives are available throughout the UK.
30:53So, check online for more details in your area.
30:55We're going back now to the hunt for the mastermind behind one of the world's largest
31:00ever Bitcoin frauds.
31:04While police stepped up their search for fugitive Chen Jumin, they continued digging into her
31:13finances, uncovering 61,000 Bitcoin, the largest seizure of cryptocurrency in the world.
31:22And today, worth almost 4.5 billion pounds.
31:27We were shocked.
31:29The amounts involved were enormous and still are enormous.
31:35The hump was on to find fugitive mastermind Chen Jumin.
31:41In early 2024, we knew that she still had access to some cryptocurrency.
31:46The wallet that we had identified had actually not had any use since 2019.
31:54We knew Chen Jumin was very good at covering her tracks.
31:58By this point, the trail really had gone quite cold.
32:10And then in February 2024, the dormant wallet sprung to life.
32:178.2 Bitcoin were transferred to an exchange account of a man called Zen Hock Ling.
32:26Knowing what we knew about Chen Jumin, we knew that she would hire people to assist her
32:33and carry out her dirty work.
32:35Zen Hock Ling had access to some of the funds that were still outstanding in this case.
32:41It also suggested that he may be in contact with Chen Jumin herself.
32:47The unit spent six weeks trailing Ling across the country.
32:53He was exhibiting a really unusual pattern of lifestyle.
32:57Zen Hock Ling was driving long distances in his car from his home address to seemingly unconnected locations.
33:07He was hiring short-term rental properties in usually alias names.
33:13That heightened our suspicion that his activity was aimed at concealing what he was up to.
33:22The turning point came when we identified an address in the Highlands in Scotland.
33:32We approached the owner of the premises.
33:35She did mention that it had been hired by a male who matched the description of Zen Hock Ling.
33:41But she also gave us a really, really crucial clue.
33:48She mentioned that they were travelling with a woman who Zen Hock Ling had described as his elderly mother.
33:58And he'd suggested that she was not very well and she was not to have any contact with anyone.
34:06It seems we might have just missed him.
34:11Luckily, police could obtain CCTV from one of the rented properties they'd stayed in.
34:17And it confirmed their suspicions.
34:20It was the first time that she'd been seen on camera since 2019.
34:25We're very lucky we got that CCTV.
34:27It was just a moment before she puts the scarf over her head.
34:31But that really gives you a sense of how careful she was in the very short periods of time that
34:37she was ever outdoors.
34:48In April 2024, police conducted a dawn raid on a property in York.
34:54I remember going into the bedroom with Cris.
34:58And immediately recognising the woman in the bed as Dieser In.
35:05Police!
35:06Police!
35:09I think she was obviously in a bit of shock.
35:11I mean we went through the door before it's 6am.
35:14Is this the next house that are people poned in this house?
35:16Of course.
35:17Do you speak English?
35:19Let's see I'm exploring.
35:21Open line again.
35:23OK, my name's Stacey Woods.
35:25Yes, Isabella Grosford from that place, OK?
35:27You're under arrest.
35:28You're going to be arrested for money laundering.
35:30She'd been on the run for several years.
35:32She was clearly in a bit of shock.
35:39I collected Miss Jan from her cell
35:42and brought her to the interview room.
35:46And she was hunched over,
35:48very meek and mild and pleasant.
35:51She was hunched over, walking very slowly, pigeon steps.
35:55And she brought her into the interview room
35:57where she could sit down.
35:59She was obviously pretending to be very ill.
36:02So I asked her about why she was walking
36:05so slowly and carefully when I'd seen her on video
36:08about a week earlier, walking normally.
36:10And she got very upset by that,
36:12which was ironic because when I accused her
36:15of stealing from 128,000 people,
36:18she wasn't upset by that at all.
36:24I think the acting,
36:27pretending she was ill and infirm
36:29and being polite,
36:30it's all part of her manipulation.
36:34She's very good at playing,
36:36targeting people,
36:38getting them to believe what she wants.
36:40And this must be true
36:42if you look at a number of people
36:44that she was able to defraud.
36:45Some very clever people in China
36:47fell for her lies.
37:18It's more than the gross domestic product
37:22of some countries.
37:23It is so huge.
37:24You can't comprehend it.
37:31I was really proud of the work of the team.
37:34So many officers gave really unwavering support
37:39to this investigation
37:40and applied their skills and their experience
37:44and their passion to bringing it home.
37:46So it was a real privilege to be a part of that.
37:56What an epic investigation.
37:58And as a direct result of those seizures,
38:01the Met have set up the country's first dedicated
38:03cryptocurrency investigation team
38:05that will focus on cryptocurrency use
38:07within organized crime.
38:09I'm now joined by Detective Sergeant Rebecca Corser
38:12and she was part of the wider investigation team
38:14and works in fraud prevention at the Met.
38:17Really good to have you with us.
38:18Let's talk about the stats, first of all, Rebecca,
38:21around cryptocurrency
38:22because they're alarming, aren't they?
38:24Yes, they are.
38:25And over the last financial year,
38:27there's been 26,000 reports
38:28of investment fraud made in the UK
38:30with losses totalling over £757 million.
38:34And 29% of those reports
38:36refer to cryptocurrency in some way
38:38with Bitcoin being most commonly mentioned.
38:41And the way that technology is changing
38:43is making it much easier
38:45for criminals to commit these types of fraud.
38:47So social media makes it a lot easier
38:48for them to contact us
38:49and deep fakes and AI make the content
38:51that they're creating seem really, really real.
38:54So it's my team's responsibility
38:55as well as a network of other teams
38:57around the country
38:58to raise awareness of these types of crime
39:00and give people advice
39:01on how to avoid becoming a victim.
39:02Are there certain age groups
39:04that are targeted more than others?
39:06So for this specific type of investment fraud,
39:10it's impacting younger people
39:12than we see in other types of investment fraud.
39:14So men aged 30 to 49.
39:16And what are some of the common dangers
39:18and concerns relating to cryptocurrency,
39:21would you say?
39:23Cryptocurrency operates in a different way
39:24to financial asset,
39:26other types of financial assets,
39:27which makes it difficult
39:28for law enforcement to take action
39:29if things go wrong.
39:30We also see technology
39:32being abused by criminals
39:34for committing these types of offences too.
39:36So from creating fake adverts,
39:39which seem really real
39:40to encourage people to invest,
39:42also creating platforms or websites
39:45that look like investments
39:47are going up in value.
39:49In some cases,
39:50criminals will allow people
39:52to withdraw small amounts
39:53of the investment to start with
39:55to help build up the confidence
39:56in this scheme.
39:58And it's only when massive amounts
40:00have been invested
40:00that they'll disappear
40:01with the funds
40:02and won't allow any further withdrawals.
40:04We also see a secondary type of fraud
40:06being committed
40:07where criminals will pay us
40:09as financial advisors
40:10or solicitors
40:11who say that they can help
40:12get the funds back
40:13from the initial investment fraud.
40:15Sadly, this is another type of fraud
40:16that's been designed
40:17to get more money out of the victim
40:19who's already lost
40:19a considerable amount of money.
40:21It's awful.
40:21And it's just so sneaky,
40:22the tactics that they use as well,
40:24isn't it?
40:25I mean, how can anybody verify
40:27that an investment is legitimate?
40:30The first thing that we're wanting
40:31people to do is to stop.
40:34Don't be rushed into making a decision
40:36and legitimate investment companies
40:40won't put pressure on you
40:41to make quick financial decisions.
40:43We then want you to think,
40:45so is what's being advertised
40:46guaranteed high returns
40:48or being advertised as no risk?
40:50All types of investments
40:51have a degree of risk
40:53and investments can go down
40:54as well as up.
40:55So any companies
40:56that are advertising otherwise
40:57should be treated with concern.
41:00We then want people to check.
41:01So is the firm regulated
41:02with the Financial Conduct Authority?
41:05Dealing with an unregulated firm
41:06means that you might not be covered
41:08if things go wrong.
41:09We also then want people
41:11to do some research.
41:12So criminals are really good
41:14at creating content
41:15that looks real
41:16and people shouldn't trust
41:17anything that's being sent
41:18to them directly
41:19by these companies
41:20because it might be fraudulent.
41:21So we want people
41:22to check independent reviews,
41:24the FCA website
41:25or company's house
41:27to make sure
41:27that they're dealing
41:28with the actual firm
41:29and it's not a near identical copy
41:31of what is a real firm.
41:33We then also want people
41:34to speak to friends,
41:35family or a professional
41:38trusted financial advisor
41:39before making any financial decisions.
41:42Really good advice there.
41:43And it isn't just
41:44the financial impact
41:45that this type of fraud
41:46can have on victims,
41:47is it?
41:47No, and sadly
41:49the impact of fraud
41:50is massive
41:50and as you said
41:51not just the financial impact.
41:53In some cases
41:54we've seen breakdowns
41:55of relationships,
41:56losses of homes,
41:57not being able to pay for bills
41:58and really big impacts
42:00on mental health
42:01including in some
42:01really tragic cases
42:02people committing suicide.
42:04And we've just got this here
42:05because it's important
42:06for people to report.
42:07They can report
42:07to reportfraud.police.uk
42:09can't they?
42:10Yes, that's the new
42:11reporting platform
42:12for fraud and cybercrime
42:13in the UK
42:13and people can get help
42:15once they've made a report.
42:16Rebecca, thanks so much
42:17for joining us this morning
42:18in telling us more.
42:20The Met has put together
42:21some useful information
42:22actually on how
42:23you can protect yourself
42:24from cybercrime
42:25which you can find
42:26on our website.
42:28Just got time
42:29for a quick update for you.
42:30Last series
42:30we asked for help
42:31to find this man
42:32Christopher Spellman
42:33who had been released
42:34from prison last summer.
42:36He had been sentenced
42:37to seven years in 2014
42:38for offences
42:39including sexually assaulting
42:41a girl under 14.
42:42He was put on
42:43a sex offenders register
42:44for life
42:45but then after
42:45his release
42:46he refused to stick
42:47to the conditions
42:48of his licence
42:49so police launched
42:50a series of public appeals
42:51to find him.
42:52They believe
42:52the 66-year-old
42:53was living off-grid
42:54and travelling around
42:55the UK
42:55on public transport
42:56staying in campsites.
42:58Well, in February
43:00he appeared at Crown Court
43:01for sentencing in Swansea
43:02after pleading guilty
43:03to breaching
43:04sexual offender
43:05notification requirements.
43:06He was sentenced
43:07to ten months
43:08in custody.
43:10That's it for today.
43:11Thanks for watching.
43:11Remember, you can catch us
43:12on iPlayer
43:13or see those appeals
43:14on our website.
43:15Do check out
43:15our Facebook page as well.
43:16Some clips from this series
43:18already had nearly
43:19a million views
43:20this week.
43:21Hello, it's fantastic.
43:22Michelle, you're going to be
43:23back with us on Monday?
43:24I certainly am
43:24and you're going to be joined
43:25by Steph McGovern tomorrow,
43:26aren't you?
43:26I am and we've got
43:27a busy one.
43:28We've got a plea
43:28from the heartbroken family
43:29of 16-year-old
43:30Aman Shakur.
43:31He was killed
43:32in Walthamstow, London
43:33in 2018.
43:37We're still baffled,
43:38you know,
43:38why did this happen?
43:39Who did it?
43:40Why would they want to do it?
43:43What could a 16-year-old
43:45have done
43:45which was so bad
43:46to be shot in the face?
43:49Do you know anything
43:50that can help
43:51his grieving family
43:52find peace?
43:53I'll see you next Monday.
43:54And I'll see you tomorrow
43:55same time, 10.45.
43:56Bye for now.
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