Beijing police intercept cross-border telecom fraud case, freeze 780,000 yuan

Police in Beijing’s Shijingshan district recently intercepted a new type of cross-border telecom fraud case, freezing 780,000 yuan in funds tied to the scheme and returning the money to the victim, according to ChainCatcher. The case involved a 53-year-old man surnamed Liu, who was staying overseas while accompanying a student, when he received a scam call from abroad. The caller posed as Chinese police and fabricated accusations including money laundering, pressuring him to urgently ask family members in China to send money. Investigators said the funds were later transferred into the accounts of two other Chinese students overseas. Police found that all three were victims of the same fraud ring, in a pattern described as "one case, multiple victims," where victims were turned into money-laundering tools for one another. In some instances, scammers first moved funds into victims’ accounts and then coerced them into converting the money into U coins to help transfer it onward. Police said patient persuasion helped "wake up" the victim and prevented larger losses.