China sentences man to life for selling state secrets for crypto

A Chinese man convicted of espionage and allegedly receiving more than 1 million yuan through cryptocurrency has been sentenced to life in prison.

The People’s Court sentenced Wang Momou to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of espionage, according to a local news report on Nov. 8.

Per the report, Wang allegedly became involved with foreign spy agencies after incurring significant losses from investing in cryptocurrency. This financial strain reportedly drove him to seek job opportunities through online forums.

It was during this time that Wang was recruited and persuaded to sell state secrets. According to the prosecution, Wang received more than 1 million yuan in cryptocurrency payments for his activities.

Initially, Wang provided small amounts of national security information but gained confidence to share more after receiving initial payments for “a few photos and documents.”

“The national security agency found that Wang provided top-secret and confidential state secrets to the other party and obtained more than 1 million yuan in spy funds through virtual currency recharge and trading,”

Weixin news outlet.

Wang, who worked as an official in a security unit, stole confidential documents by bypassing required procedures and regulations, such as the registration and signing for documents. A search conducted by the national security agency uncovered several high-level secret documents on his computer.

China’s jailing of Wang comes a few months after the country extradited a suspect in a $14 billion crypto scheme in Thailand. Meanwhile, in August 2024, Taiwan also convicted several people for spying for China and getting paid in crypto.