Behind the 15 Celebrities Involved in the JPEX Case KOL Cold-blooded Hype Murder, Downtown Cash Throw for Traffic

15 Celebrities Linked to JPEX Case Cold-blooded Hype Murder, Cash Throwing for Traffic

Author: Carl

The false propaganda of KOLs has finally been punished by the law. Recently, the JPEX case has further escalated, and the Hong Kong police have arrested 6 people, including KOLs Lin Zuo and Chen Yi, on suspicion of “conspiracy to defraud”.

The cryptocurrency circle is impetuous, seeking attention through astonishing behaviors, earning traffic and profits. KOLs may have become accustomed to it, but violating the law will be subject to legal sanctions.

At a time when Hong Kong is vigorously promoting the development of Web 3.0, compliance is also gradually tightening, and the cryptocurrency industry is moving towards regulation. As Hong Kong Legislative Council member Wu Jiezhuang said, the actions of JPEX do not represent the entire industry. It is precisely because Hong Kong wants to vigorously promote the balance between regulation and innovation in the Web 3.0 policy that it cannot let the bad money drive out the good money.

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15 celebrity KOLs involved, Lin Zuo and Chen Yi arrested

On September 18, due to the JPEX case involving virtual asset trading platform, the Hong Kong police arrested 4 men and 2 women on suspicion of “conspiracy to defraud”, including cryptocurrency circle KOLs Lin Zuo and Chen Yi.

The Hong Kong police stated that as of 2 pm on September 18, a total of 1,408 reports related to the JPEX incident were received, involving an amount of HKD 1 billion. The case is under further investigation, and it is not ruled out that more people may be arrested.

Prior to this, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission issued a notice warning that the virtual asset trading platform JPEX is not regulated and has not applied for a license from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission. The Hong Kong police intervened in the case. Subsequently, JPEX staff urgently evacuated the Token2049 venue in Singapore, and withdrawal restrictions and a withdrawal fee of 999U and a withdrawal limit of 1000U were set on the JPEX exchange.

According to Techub News statistics, as many as 15 celebrities and KOLs are involved in the JPEX case, including Lin Zuo, YouTuber Chen Yi, Xiao Ruoyuan, Zhong Peisheng, Zhang Zhilin, Zhuang Simin, Fei Ma, “Coin Master” Huang Zhejie, etc. Taiwanese artist Chen Lingjiu is also involved.

Before being arrested, Lin Zuo posted a message stating that he would cooperate with regulatory authorities and personally go to the police station to provide relevant case materials and clarify his relationship with JPEX. “I am not involved in business with the exchange. I cannot truly find the person in charge of the platform.”

Another arrested KOL, Chen Yi, was very dissatisfied with the warning issued by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission against JPEX. She posted a video on social media criticizing the Hong Kong government for suppressing JPEX, and she claimed, “Unfortunately, the government does not have a law against fake news, otherwise we could see all the employees of the Securities and Futures Commission going to jail together.”

Currently, JPEX has taken down all transactions on the wealth management page. On September 18, JPEX announced that it had requested guidance from the Securities and Futures Commission again on September 15, but only received a reply stating that the matter had been handed over to the police for handling.

Frenzied Coin Circle KOL: Sensationalizing Murder Cases and Throwing Money for Traffic

Prior to the JPEX incident, KOLs such as Lin Zuo and “Coin Young Master” Huang Zhejie were already controversial figures.

According to media reports, Lin Zuo came from a wealthy family and had obtained a lawyer’s qualification. He studied under senior lawyer Qing Hong and voluntarily delisted himself in 2017. In 2020, he took on the role of financial planning consultant at British Prudential, but was fired due to his cold-blooded sensationalization of a murder case. In July of this year, Lin Zuo publicly announced that he had applied to become a partner at JPEX and opened a “Lin Zuo Coin Trading” establishment in Central, Hong Kong in August to promote virtual currency and JPEX.

In June of this year, a shocking murder occurred at Hong Kong’s Hollywood Plaza. In order to attract attention, Lin Zuo claimed on social media that he owned the same pair of sports shoes as the suspect, and that the shoes, which were 90% new, were only priced at 399 yuan. He even posted photos of himself intentionally imitating the suspect’s appearance, including wearing the same shoes and similar clothes.

Lin Zuo’s behavior drew criticism from netizens, and under public pressure, the company he was associated with released a statement declaring that Lin Zuo’s personal remarks were contrary to the company’s values, and thus decided to terminate their cooperation.

Prior to this, Lin Zuo had made numerous astonishing actions. For example, publicly stating that 90% of the contestants for Miss Hong Kong were ugly, publicly sharing semi-nude photos of his girlfriend, questioning whether Charmaine Sheh’s brother was truly her biological child, and offering 1 million yuan for DNA testing to prove it.

“Coin Young Master” Huang Zhejie is a typical example of a “loser” who made a comeback in the coin circle. According to media reports, Huang Zhejie, originally named Guan Zijie, used to work as a swimming coach. He was sentenced to 160 hours of community service for stealing a mobile phone. Later, Huang Zhejie made his first fortune of at least eight digits by purchasing Bitcoin around 2015, and proclaimed himself as the “number one person in Hong Kong’s blockchain.”

However, Huang Zhejie’s outrageous behavior led to his arrest at least twice. In 2018, Huang Zhejie threw a large amount of Hong Kong dollars from a rooftop in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong, but it was exposed that this was done to attract attention and achieve the goal of “making money” through traffic. Subsequently, Huang Zhejie was arrested by the police on suspicion of offenses under the Public Order Ordinance in Hong Kong for his behavior in public places. He was later released on bail.

In 2019, Huang Zhejie was arrested for selling virtual currency mining machines and engaging in fraud, involving an amount of approximately 2.6 million yuan. According to reports, Huang Zhejie had long conducted false advertising by arranging investment seminars and using social media to promote the Filecoin mining machine, claiming that it could be profitable within three months, thus enticing victims to make purchases.

Industry analysts believe that the modern era of internet celebrity economy has led to excessive commercialization and pursuit of vanity and exposure. Coin circle internet celebrities are even more restless. Under the wealth effect of the cryptocurrency industry, many KOLs resort to any means to pursue traffic, and many of their behaviors cross the ethical bottom line of humanity without any constraints. However, regardless of the circumstances, violating the law is unforgivable and will ultimately be subject to legal sanctions.

“Due to the false propaganda of KOLs, a large number of users have suffered losses. However, several KOLs involved claimed that they have also lost money, which is questionable. In fact, they will never disclose how much money they have actually made to the public,” the analyst said.

Possible sentence of up to 14 years imprisonment

Tony Tong, Co-Chairman of the Hong Kong Blockchain Association (HKBA.club), stated to Techub News that this is the first enforcement action by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) since the new virtual asset licensing regime came into effect. It is the first strike against unlicensed exchanges, which will promote the compliant development of the Web 3.0 industry in Hong Kong.

“JPEX has invested heavily in advertising in Hong Kong, with the loudest advertisements. Their advertisements are everywhere, including KOLs, subways, and signboards. However, they do not have a license and have not applied for one, which is unfair to the exchanges that have already applied for licenses. The SFC needs to properly regulate the cryptocurrency market to prevent more fraudulent activities. This also serves as a reminder to other exchanges that they must apply for a license,” said Tong.

In response to the JPEX incident, Hong Kong Legislative Council member Wu Jiezhuang expressed on social media that this is the behavior of individual unlicensed exchanges and does not represent the entire industry. It is precisely because Hong Kong is vigorously promoting a balanced policy on regulation and innovation for Web 3.0 that it cannot allow inferior practices to drive out superior ones.

In other countries and regions, it is also common for internet celebrities to be sued for promoting cryptocurrencies. Recently, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused actress Lindsay Lohan, YouTube user Jake Paul, and others of promoting cryptocurrencies on social media. Boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. and former NBA player Paul Pierce have also been sued for allegedly leading investors into cryptocurrency scams.

Tong advises internet celebrities in the cryptocurrency industry that before promoting related products, they must have a clear understanding of whether the company and its products are legal and compliant. Promoting unlicensed institutions may involve legal responsibilities and even criminal risks.

Wu Wenqian, Founder of Mura and a lawyer, told Techub News that certain celebrities/KOLs have promoted themselves as partners of JPEX online. The term “partner” may make people think that this is not just ordinary promotion and endorsement. Celebrities endorsing cryptocurrency exchanges need to be careful with the content of their promotions. If the content is misleading, it may be considered conspiracy to commit fraud. If a KOL promotes an unlicensed exchange as having a license online, this may also be misleading.

According to Section 159C of the Crimes Ordinance (Chapter 200) of Hong Kong, conspiracy to defraud can be punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment. According to the Theft Ordinance (Chapter 210) of Hong Kong, dishonestly obtaining another person’s property by deception can be punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment.

Lawyer Liu Zheng of Shanghai Mankun Law Firm expressed to Techub news that in mainland China, KOLs in the cryptocurrency industry also face similar legal risks. Common criminal legal risks are closely related to different sub-fields of the blockchain industry, such as recommending digital collectibles and virtual currencies for project parties, providing matching services for buying and selling virtual currencies, acting as information intermediaries, and spreading false or misleading information.

Liu Zheng suggests that before publishing or forwarding information, KOLs must ensure the authenticity and reliability of the information. For information that is difficult to verify and may have negative impacts on others, it is advisable to refrain from publishing it, even if it means missing out on the flow dividends brought by false information, in order to avoid harm caused by recklessly publishing false information.

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