Crypto Laundering Sentence, Ulbricht's Gratitude, and Coinbase's Expansion into the UK
Summary:
Jian Wen, a British-Chinese woman, was sentenced in London to over six years in jail for laundering BTC involved in a large fraud case in China. Ross Ulbricht, Silk Road's founder, thanked Trump publicly for his commitment to commuting his sentence if re-elected. Coinbase's non-profit "Stand with Crypto" initiated its first international expansion in the UK. Other news includes a collaboration between Marathon Digital and Kenya's Energy Ministry for exploiting unutilized energy for Bitcoin mining and footballer Cristiano Ronaldo's new NFT collection with Binance amidst a pending lawsuit.
Jian Wen, a British-Chinese woman, was handed a jail term of six years and eight months by Southwark Crown Court in London on May 24 for engaging in the laundering of over $1 million Bitcoin (BTC) money associated with a $6.3 billion fraud case in China. A former employee in the hospitality industry, Wen was apprehended after being questioned through the Know Your Customer (KYC) process when she attempted to acquire properties in London valued at millions, according to the Law Society Gazette. She was found guilty in March of involving herself in a money laundering scheme. Yadi Zhang, Wen's previous superior, is claimed to be the individual she was laundered Bitcoin for even though she denies being guilty. The Financial Times reports that Wen was not implicated in the primary fraudulent activity.
Mark Harries KC, Wen's legal representative, argued that she was undoubtedly deceived and exploited, but Sally-Ann Hales KC, the presiding judge, affirmed her belief that Wen was aware, not merely suspecting, that she was dealing with proceeds from illegal activities.
Ross Ulbricht, the imprisoned founder of the Silk Road online marketplace, has expressed his gratitude to Donald Trump for his commitment to granting him a pardon if he's re-elected as president. “Last night, Donald Trump pledged to commute my sentence on day 1, if reelected. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you,” were Ulbricht's words, as dictated from prison, in his May 26 X post, which was managed by his family on his behalf. Ulbricht has spent ten years of his life imprisonment without parole since his 2015 conviction for leading and managing the Silk Road. At a Libertarian Party Convention, Trump assured the attendees, “We’re going to get him home.”
"Stand with Crypto," Coinbase's crypto advocacy nonprofit, announced its first international expansion to the United Kingdom. As per a May 24 blog post by Coinbase, an inaugural event was held at the U.K. Parliament attended by roughly 100 cryptocurrency industry workers, investors, academics, and media representatives. According to Coinbase, the U.K is its “largest international market” with an estimate of “over 6 million crypto holders.” A Political Action Committee (PAC) was recently launched in the United States by Stand with Crypto as a preparatory act for the upcoming presidential election in November.
In other news, Marathon Digital, a Bitcoin mining company, is partnering with Kenya’s Energy Ministry to capture and utilize unexploited energy to run mining rigs. Despite a pending class-action lawsuit in Florida over his other ones, famous football player Cristiano Ronaldo has launched a fourth nonfungible token (NFT) collection with Binance. A UK cannabis millionaire has been making legal 'deals on wheels' using cryptocurrency, reports said.
Published At
5/27/2024 9:25:43 AM
Disclaimer: Algoine does not endorse any content or product on this page. Readers should conduct their own research before taking any actions related to the asset, company, or any information in this article and assume full responsibility for their decisions. This article should not be considered as investment advice. Our news is prepared with AI support.
Do you suspect this content may be misleading, incomplete, or inappropriate in any way, requiring modification or removal?
We appreciate your report.