BlockBeats reported on Aug. 13 that a court in Anshun, Guizhou, sentenced a man surnamed Zhao to seven months in prison and imposed a 5,000 yuan fine after prosecutors accused him of using a fake cryptocurrency “airdrop project” to defraud a friend of $1,757.
Online investment exchanges led to trust
According to the case details, Zhao had long followed the cryptocurrency investment sector and regularly posted investment insights and financial management tips on social media platforms. The victim, surnamed Zhang, was also a crypto enthusiast. The two met on a social platform through their shared interest and later became friends, frequently discussing investment strategies online.
During that period, Zhao built Zhang’s trust through what was described as professional-looking investment analysis. Zhao later suggested they invest together, and Zhang agreed. After some time, however, Zhang suffered heavy losses and said he no longer wanted to continue following Zhao’s trades.
Fake airdrop pitch used to solicit funds
On Aug. 23, 2025, Zhao told Zhang that an app had launched an “airdrop project,” described in the report as a program that distributes a project’s native tokens free of charge to eligible users for promotion, participation incentives, or loyalty rewards. Zhao urged Zhang to put the remaining funds in his account into the project and promised returns of 100 to 200 U tokens within two days.
Zhao also said he would cover any losses incurred during that period. To ease Zhang’s concerns, Zhao claimed that all investment funds would be transferred to a “public chain” address. Zhang believed him, converted the remaining $1,757 in his account into Ether, and completed the transfer through a wallet link provided by Zhao.
Prosecutors said the wallet tied to that link was not a public blockchain address. It was a personal account Zhao had registered using his girlfriend’s identity information.
Repayment never arrived
After the agreed repayment date passed, Zhao did not honor his promise. Zhang repeatedly pressed for repayment, but Zhao responded with excuses, including that the wrong link had been used and that more time was needed to trace the transfer.
Zhang reported the case to police on Sept. 7 of the same year after noticing something was wrong.
Prosecutors filed charges in April
On April 2 this year, the Pingba District People’s Procuratorate brought a public prosecution against Zhao on suspicion of fraud. Prosecutors said Zhao obtained another person’s property by concealing the truth, and that the amount involved was relatively large, making his conduct a criminal fraud offense.
The procuratorate also said Zhao truthfully confessed the criminal facts after being taken into custody, which counted as a mitigating circumstance. It added that he had fully compensated the victim for the losses and voluntarily accepted guilt and punishment, factors that allowed a more lenient penalty under the law.