Shanghai Court Analyzes Criminal Responsibility of Personnel Involved in Virtual Currency Fraud Cases

On August 18, the Shanghai Intermediate People's Court in China released a typical case analysis regarding whether personnel involved in directing victims in virtual currency telecom fraud cases constitute accomplices in fraud. From February 2022 to April 2023, the defendants, seeking profit, assisted upstream fraudsters in directing victims by using virtual phone software to guide them into scam groups, resulting in 30 victims being defrauded of over 2.34 million yuan by an overseas fraud organization. The overseas fraud organization transferred the funds into the suspects' trading accounts via virtual currency. Three defendants were sentenced to prison terms ranging from ten to thirteen years for fraud. The court pointed out that directing personnel may constitute accomplices in fraud or illegal use of information networks depending on specific circumstances, with the key being whether they formed a clear intent and stable collaborative division of labor with the upstream fraud gang. In judicial practice, when determining the criminal responsibility of directing personnel, factors such as their role in the criminal chain, level of organizational management, connections with upstream criminals, methods of profit, and any abnormal behavior should be comprehensively considered. Actions that merely provide general online services without forming a conspiracy to commit fraud should be distinguished from directing actions that knowingly participate in the implementation of fraud.

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