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A Chinese man holding a US green card was charged with participating in international gift card fraud and money laundering. They transported electronic products to China and Hong Kong through warehouses. The account in question had cash flows of US$46 million over three years.
A Chinese citizen has US citizenshipgreen card A man suspected of being involved in cross-border gift card smugglingscam case, and were recently charged with additional money laundering conspiracy. He runs a mysterious warehouse. His gang uses stolen gift cards to purchase high-value electronic products such as Apple, and then transfers them through the warehouse to mainland China and other countries.hong kong and other locations, and use cryptocurrency transactions to hide the source and whereabouts of funds. Court documents show approximately $46 million was deposited and transferred into accounts belonging to that individual over approximately three years.
According to TV station WMUR, 38-year-old Chinese man Jinbin Ren (transliterated) was charged with additional money laundering conspiracy by a federal grand jury on October 21. He was previously federally convicted on suspicion of wire fraud conspiracy. According to court documents, Ren Jinbin is suspected of receiving funds that passed through multiple layers of cryptocurrency transactions. The relevant transactions were designed to conceal the source and flow of funds. During a three-year period, a total of $46 million was deposited and transferred from an account belonging to Ren Jinbin.
The Justice Department reported that Ren Jinbin is suspected of collaborating with other associates to conduct online romance scams, scams targeting the elderly, obtaining victims’ gift card information through hacking and other methods, and then using these gift cards to purchase Apple products and other high-priced electronic goods.
Prosecutors alleged that Ren Jinbin ran a warehouse responsible for storing related electronic products and arranging for shipment to China, Hong Kong and other locations. He deliberately chose to buy goods in places where there was no sales tax. According to court information, the individuals involved communicated through WeChat to coordinate the purchase, sale, transportation of goods, and cryptocurrency payments.
The investigation began when a resident reported that gift cards had been stolen and used for purchases at Walmart. Upon further investigation, police discovered a gift card fraud network involving victims from multiple states and individuals overseas. The Justice Ministry reported that three other co-defendants, Mingdong Chen (transliteration), Mengying Jiang (transliteration), and Naxin Wu (transliteration), previously pleaded guilty to telecommunications fraud conspiracy and were scheduled to be sentenced in 2025.
Ren Jinbin’s lawyer, John Dennehy, said that Ren Jinbin has lived in the United States for more than 20 years, has a green card, and lives with his wife and two daughters. He was never charged with any violent crime. Ren Jinbin has been released on bail for the time being, but he must wear an electronic monitoring device and is not allowed to make any cryptocurrency transactions.
Summary FAQ
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They were charged with participating in an international gift card fraud, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy and using cryptocurrencies to conceal the source and flow of funds and converting illicit proceeds into transportable high-priced electronic products.
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Prosecutors said he operated a warehouse to centrally store high-priced electronic products, such as Apple, purchased with stolen gift cards, and then arranged for shipments to mainland China and Hong Kong, and knowingly purchased them in sales tax-free zones.
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Ren Jinbin has additionally been charged with money laundering conspiracy and has been released on bail, but must wear an electronic monitoring device and not engage in any cryptocurrency transactions; Three other co-defendants have pleaded guilty and are scheduled to be sentenced in 2025.
