Wu Shuo learned from a report by China News Service that the People’s Procuratorate of Cangshan District, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, has recently filed a public prosecution in connection with a Bitcoin theft case.



At the end of 2020, a man surnamed Wang entrusted a man surnamed Lin to cash out the Bitcoin he held and agreed to pay remuneration. However, Lin used operations on Wang’s Bitcoin wallet hard drive to steal the wallet’s “private keys” and related data, transferred 4 Bitcoins into his own name, and sold them gradually, illegally earning about 900,000 yuan.

In 2024, after Wang discovered his assets were missing, he reported the matter to the police, and Lin was subsequently captured.

The prosecutors said that although state documents clearly specify that virtual currencies do not have the status of legal tender, Bitcoin meets the general characteristics of property under the Criminal Law and falls within the scope of property crimes.

Lin was sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of 12 years and 7 months, and was fined 300,000 yuan. Lin appealed, but the Fuzhou Intermediate People’s Court ruled to dismiss the appeal and uphold the original verdict.
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GateUser-0f33f9ef
· 4h ago
Lin's method of operation is a classic version of a rug pull in Web3, and the verdict is well-deserved.
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GateUser-0d1088ad
· 11h ago
This case serves as a wake-up call to everyone holding custodial private keys: trust is the most expensive smart contract vulnerability.
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APuppyInTheWarmSun
· 12h ago
With the key in hand, I hold the world; trustees become thieves, the centralized tragedy before DeFi.
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GlitchOrchard
· 12h ago
900k for 12 years of prison meals, with an annualized return rate of negative infinity, this guy didn't learn math well
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InstantNoodle-LevelResearcher
· 12h ago
12 years and 7 months, this sentence is heavier than many traditional thefts. It seems the court truly considers BTC as property.
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VinylRadio
· 12h ago
The appeal was dismissed; Fuzhou Intermediate Court's efficiency is commendable, +1 for crypto case precedent.
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QuietExitPlan
· 12h ago
They stole in 2020 but only reported it in 2024; Wang’s heart is really something—being a hodler’s resolve was used in the wrong place.
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On-ChainHealthInspector
· 12h ago
Trivia: Bitcoin in China is not considered currency but classified as property, Schrödinger's legal status
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