Chinese woman convicted in UK over £5.5bn bitcoin scam
The police said the probe began in 2018 after they got a tipoff about the transfer of criminal assets.
Qianhad been "evading justice" for five years up to her arrest, which required a complex investigation involving multiple jurisdictions, said Detective Sergeant Isabella Grotto, who led the Met's investigation.
She fled China using false documents and entered the UK, where she attempted to launder the stolen money by buying property, said the Met.
She had help from another Chinese national, Jian Wen. The former takeaway worker was jailed for six years and eight months last year for her part in the criminal operation.
The Met said it had seized a total of 61,000 bitcoins from Qian.
"Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are increasingly being used by organised criminals to disguise and transfer assets, so that fraudsters may enjoy the benefits of their criminal conduct," said Robin Weyell, deputy chief Crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service.
"This case, involving the largest cryptocurrency seizure in the UK, illustrates the scale of criminal proceeds available to those fraudsters."
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