The Bitcoin tycoon you think of vs. the Bitcoin tycoon in reality

Qian Zhimin, known as the "Bitcoin Goddess," was born in 1978 in Rugao, Jiangsu, with a college education.
Due to a car accident that left her disabled, she stayed at home and engaged in some gray online industries under a pseudonym.
In 2013, she registered "UBS International" in Hong Kong under a pseudonym, using a get-rich-quick scheme to run a pyramid scheme, and was involved in a case where the personnel were arrested, but she narrowly escaped.
In 2014, she established "Blue Sky Grey" in Tianjin, claiming to focus on environmental protection, smart elderly care, and Bitcoin mining, promising a 300% return, with the slogan "You give Grey three years, Grey gives you three generations of wealth."
She claimed to be a Tsinghua graduate with a Ph.D. in American finance. Her "Carnival Franchise Plan" initially paid returns on time, attracting elderly investors to borrow money and invest.
In July 2017, the platform collapsed, and she had already embezzled over 61k yuan.
The nominal legal representative, Ren Jiangtao (a junior she knew in the game), was sentenced to 7 years, while Qian Zhimin went into hiding again.
She converted her remaining huge fortune into 61k Bitcoin and escaped to London using a fake passport.
Due to language barriers, she adopted the alias "Zhang Yadi" and recruited Chinese assistant Wen Jian.
Wen Jian, divorced with a child and living frugally, became her housekeeper, helping her launder money, buy luxury homes, cars, luxury goods, and travel.
She even sent Wen Jian’s son to a noble school.
Wen Jian helped her set up companies and handle accounts, legalizing the illicit money.
In 2018, the UK cracked down on crypto asset money laundering.
Qian Zhimin targeted a luxury house worth 200 million yuan, but Wen Jian couldn’t clarify the source of funds, which alarmed the police.
In October, police raided the mansion and seized Bitcoin accounts and Qian Zhimin’s diary.
In her diary, she planned to buy an unrecognized small country, declare herself queen, build temples, airports, and ports, and obtain diplomatic immunity.
The police froze 61k Bitcoin, but she was not arrested on the spot and escaped again.
Wen Jian was sentenced to 6 years and 8 months for money laundering.
In April 2024, the fugitive Qian Zhimin was captured in northern UK.
She was sentenced to 11 years and 8 months in prison.
The judge condemned her as "purely greedy."
The frozen 61k Bitcoin (once valued at over $6.4 billion, about 44 billion RMB) remains a mystery as to ownership, and under UK law, unclaimed or unrecovered illicit funds may revert to the UK government.
China demands the return of victims’ funds, but legal battles will be long.
What Qian Zhimin left behind is not a "legend," but crime evidence locked on the blockchain, forever unwashable.