In 2020, this tech guy selected high rebate ratio and many sub-accounts from the agent account of the 'Kyun Sports' gambling website and replaced the rebate bank accounts of these agent accounts with the bank accounts he controlled, stealing a total of more than 35.5 million yuan from the agent rebate funds of the 'Kyun Sports' gambling website.
Among them, more than 6.44 million yuan was transferred to 13 bank cards purchased by the tech guy; additionally, a certain group used this to buy Bitcoin and other virtual currencies transferred to his own wallet, with this portion of stolen funds amounting to more than 29.05 million yuan.
However, according to insiders, there was basically no Kyun platform before 2020, and the allegations might involve collusion between internal and external parties.
The charges initially started from operating a casino, changed to illegally obtaining data from a computer information system, then to theft, and finally to infringing on citizens' personal information.
This is not a story of black eating black; in the abyss of the cryptocurrency world, no one can escape unscathed, no matter how much money you made.
So what kind of operation did the tech guy do? He just exploited the loophole of an overseas gambling website, changing the rebate address of other agents to his own, making off with 183 bitcoins in total, which at the time's market price amounted to over 80 million RMB.
What they think psychologically is: I just exploited a little loophole to take some advantage, I didn’t use any weapons to rob, and what I took is "ill-gotten gains" from gambling websites and criminal groups. What crime is this?
Lawyer Zhang has encountered too many of these cases. The examples around me are numerous. Even Lawyer Zhang himself was once set up in a black-eating-black situation by his 20-year-old brother. The parties involved almost all held this mentality—thinking they are standing on the "opposite side of evil," but in fact, they have already stepped into the abyss of the law.
According to the market price at that time, it was over 80 million RMB, and what happened? The uncles from Zhangjiajie in Hunan and Changge in Henan successively set their sights on him and initiated a case to arrest him.
The most dramatic part of this case is still to come: the uncles from Zhangjiajie first seized 103 coins, immediately liquidated them for nearly 50 million, and then arranged for someone to get bail.
Just as the bail procedures were getting warm, the uncles from Changge came to take the person away, along with seizing the remaining 80 coins, which are worth over 30 million.
Looking at the charges, they change like flipping a book: from "operating a casino" to "illegally obtaining data from a computer information system," then to "theft," and finally to "infringing on citizens' personal information," leaving people dizzy.
Don't just see this as a ridiculous story. In my view, it is fundamentally the physical rules of the old world, a blatant hunt against the digital world—you think hiding behind code allows you to do as you please, not knowing they have already set up a net.
Because I have seen too many cases, for example, the online gambling case from back then, where the person had 500,000 in their account and only put in 35,000 as gambling funds, needing 350,000 to release the card...
For example, last year's exchange was exploited, and our clients made off with 30 million to their wallets. As a result, because they withdrew 500,000, their cards were frozen, and they were fully compensated and directly punished, simply because of "holding coins is a crime."
So once the legislation comes out this year, many people will be pulled onto lists for accountability, and even all the information of cryptocurrency merchants is laid out on the desks of the big shots; this has been said for many years.
Things that cannot be safely pocketed are just things you are holding for others. As long as the source of your coins is not that legitimate, you will be put on a list. But on the other hand, how many people’s coins are legitimate? Unless you bought them with your hard-earned money.
And using your hard-earned money to buy coins, isn't that being a leek?
What kind of serious person buys coins...
Some might ask: Why do the uncles from Zhangjiajie and Changge initiate cases and seize coins separately for the same person and the same incident? This question is reasonable; after all, the regulations on how public security organs handle criminal cases are clearly stated—whoever initiates the case first has jurisdiction.
But each of you needs to understand, that is not a string of meaningless code, it is 80 million RMB in real terms. From another perspective, you might have encountered this: when you report a regular theft case, the police say, "This is not our jurisdiction, go to the opposite police station," and that’s it.
Why is there such a big difference in handling cases? The answer is simple: when the profit is large enough, the interpretation of the rules is no longer on paper. This thing is called profit coverage.
This is everything that everyone sees on the surface; in fact, it's about two platforms. Before the opening of the cloud, it was the duck neck system, which is an independent thing. Outsiders definitely wouldn't know, so the uncle's actions are completely justified, which is why there is no list because they are two platforms.
The most intriguing part of this case is the whereabouts of those 103 bitcoins. The case is still under review, the court has not ruled, and the suspect is still legally "innocent," but the coins have already been liquidated into nearly 50 million in legal currency, landing in someone's pocket.
First, keep the money in your hands. As for what the charges are, just adjust slowly: Initially set as "operating a casino," and upon realizing something is off—he is just taking advantage of the situation; he is neither the dealer nor the agent; the logic does not add up.
Then change it to "theft," but that got stuck again—the victim is an illegal gambling website, and the nature of this "stolen property" is unclear; then change it again to "infringing on citizens' personal information"… In short, people can be temporarily released, but money can never be returned.
This is also what I have always advised Web3 entrepreneurs: don't always think about finding loopholes and walking the edge. You think you are using the rules to make money, but forget that in the face of absolute power, the interpretation of the rules has never been in your hands. You are playing with loopholes; they are playing with "rule reconstruction."
Don't touch the gray industry, don't touch the gray industry, don't touch the gray industry.
In the world of Web3, there are quite a few "super individuals" hidden—top-notch technology, quick thinkers. When they find a contract loophole or system bug, they think, "If I don’t take it, it’s a waste." Especially when facing gambling websites and Ponzi schemes, which are inherently "dirty," they feel less psychological burden and even think of themselves as "acting on behalf of justice."
But they all forget one saying: All gifts of fate have long been marked with a price in the dark. The moment you reach into the gray industry, you put yourself in a "Schrödinger state" of being judged—where you could be labeled as theft or as illegally obtaining data, depending entirely on how they interpret it.
Even if you are a technical genius, in the face of power and the legal toolbox, you are just a coder daring to take a gamble; there is no essential difference.
If you really can't let go of Web3 and want to continue mixing in this field, remember these few pieces of advice:
First, physical isolation must be thorough, but don’t deceive yourself. If you insist on adventuring in this high-risk jungle, try to separate your physical self from blockchain activities. But I must say this clearly— as long as you are within the jurisdiction, such isolation is essentially self-deception. If they want to find you, there will always be a way.
Second, keeping wealth hidden is a hard rule. 80 million is enough to tempt many to take risks. Until you have a solid compliance armor, holding huge wealth on the blockchain is not a blessing, it's a curse. Lawyer Zhang has already told you that making too much money in the cryptocurrency world is not a good thing; 5 million is enough.
Once you have 10 million, your name is already on the desks of many big shots, so Lawyer Zhang wrote an article stating that those who claim to have made a lot of money are definitely just boasting.
Third, the red line must be respected. Whether it’s gambling money or money laundering, dirty money is dirty money. Don't think that sophisticated technical means can clean it up. The transparency of the blockchain world leaves even less trace than bank transfers—every action you take is clearly recorded on the blockchain; you can't escape or hide.
Fourth, do not overestimate anyone's bottom line. Do not overestimate the procedural justice bottom line of law enforcement, nor underestimate the subjective initiative they can unleash for "fines and confiscated income." Rules are dead, but people are alive. In the face of interests, procedures are sometimes just a formality.
We yearn for Web3, which is merely a longing for a decentralized, free, and equal new world. But before the new world truly arrives, we are ultimately still mortal beings, unable to escape the gravitational field of the old world—the boundaries of law and the rules of power are always the sword of Damocles hanging over our heads.
This Shenzhen IT man paid over 80 million as tuition, hoping to awaken those still drifting in the cryptocurrency world just a little.
In the face of absolute strength, we are all ants.
