Just sold a "cake"
Why is the card all frozen?
Became an accomplice to fraudsters?
According to reports, on December 27, 2023, the owner of a cake shop in Wugang, Hunan Province, reported that she received a "special reservation" from a customer, who asked to put 10,000 yuan in cash into the cake and send it to a designated location, and she received a bank transfer and fulfilled the transaction afterwards. But then all the bank cards in her name were frozen by the public security organs.
Source: Internet
The public security organ informed her that she used her bank card to help fraudsters withdraw cash, so she was placed on file for investigation on suspicion of aiding trust. On January 9, the police arrested Zhang and five others in a hotel in Shaoyang, and at this time, they were "cutting cakes and dividing money".
Source: Internet
After interrogation, Zhang established contact with overseas fraudsters and helped them launder money with a 30% commission return. Since October 2023, the gang led by Zhang has transferred illegal funds to the store owner on the pretext of giving gifts, requiring him to withdraw cash from the bank, put cakes and flowers into "surprise" gifts, and send them to the designated place. He has successively committed 75 crimes in more than 10 counties and cities in 3 provinces, and the funds involved are as high as 1.1 million yuan. At present, Zhang and five others are under criminal detention on suspicion of covering up and concealing criminal proceeds.
In this regard, some netizens think that the store owner is too unlucky, some netizens discuss the money laundering routines and conviction standards involved in the incident, and some netizens say that they have had similar experiences and recommend that everyone be vigilant. In addition, there is also a reminder from the cake shop colleague - "In the future, you can no longer accept money from unknown sources".
Source: Weibo, Douyin comments
Zhang Xiaofeng, a member of the lawyer expert database of "Rule of Law Daily" and a partner of Beijing Jingjing Law Firm, analyzed that the owner of the cake shop may be suspected of aiding information network criminal activities, and his use of his bank card to help criminals cash out is to provide payment and settlement assistance for upstream crimes. On the basis of the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law, clearly knowing that others are using information networks to commit crimes, providing them with technical support such as internet access, server hosting, network storage, or communication transmission, or providing assistance such as advertising and promotion, payment and settlement, and the circumstances are serious, a sentence of up to three years imprisonment or short-term detention is to be given, and/or a fine. If the money involved in the case is determined by the court to be the proceeds of fraud, it will be returned to the victim in accordance with the law.
"In practice, the determination that a suspect in the crime of aiding and abetting trusts subjectively constitutes 'knowing' should be considered in a variety of circumstances. From the perspective of ordinary people, if the suspect is subjectively unaware of the specific predicate crime, but has repeatedly engaged in relevant acts or the predicate crime, the offender has obtained the suspect's services with obviously unreasonable remarks or consideration significantly higher than the normal remuneration, it can be presumed that he has 'knowing'. Lawyer Zhang Xiaofeng believes that the owner of the cake shop did not maintain due due prudence when his customers made obviously unreasonable demands, and easily provided his bank card to collect transfers, which was extremely risky. Combined with other circumstances such as the individual's cognitive ability and profitability, it may be presumed to constitute "knowing". In addition, even if it is determined that the boss does not constitute the crime of aiding and abetting, his act of providing a bank account is also at a high risk of being defrauded.
A reporter from the rule of law network found that this is not the first time that such incidents have been exposed. Previously, Jia (pseudonym), the owner of a flower shop in Qu County, Sichuan, received an order from a stranger. The stranger said that it was inconvenient for him to go out and needed cash urgently, so he could transfer it to Jia's bank card and ask Jia to help withdraw 20,000 yuan in cash, and bring it with him when he sent flowers, and promised to have a "benefit fee" afterwards. Jia didn't notice anything unusual at first, but when he said that he had a "benefit fee", he became suspicious and immediately called the police.
Lawyer Zhang Xiaofeng also said that there are many criminal means and manifestations of the crime of aiding trust: there are those who use other people's bank cards to launder money by leasing or borrowing other people's bank cards to "run points"; there are those who register virtual currency accounts under the guise of other people's identity information to help them launder money; there are those who apply for large-value credit cards and use customers' credit cards to help them launder money; and there are also those who use other people's mobile phone cards to use other people's mobile phone cards for telecommunications fraud and other criminal activities...... Renting or lending bank cards, ID cards, credit cards, or telephone cards, when the circumstances are serious, may constitute the crime of aiding trust.
In recent years, especially since the "broken card" operation in October 2020, the number of cases prosecuted by the procuratorate for suspected crimes of aiding and abetting has increased rapidly, and it has now become the third most prosecuted crime among various criminal offenses (the first two are dangerous driving and theft). At the same time, it has also become the "first crime" of telecom network fraud.
Not long ago, some media reported that Xiao Fan learned in a secret chat software that as long as he joins the "running group", he can make money quickly. Immediately, he provided his bank card in accordance with the requirements of the telecommunications fraud gang, and successively went to designated dens in Nanjing and Fujian to participate in "money laundering". A few days ago, the procuratorate prosecuted Xiao Fan on suspicion of aiding letters, concealment, and theft.
It is worth noting that some statistics show that the proportion of students participating in wire fraud is increasing, and fraudsters trick students into promising to obtain high returns as long as they provide bank cards and mobile phone cards, resulting in some students with insufficient knowledge becoming "tool people" for "helping credit" crimes.
In this regard, many netizens said that it is difficult to distinguish which behaviors will become accomplices to fraud or even crimes in daily life, and it is simply "impossible to prevent".
Lawyer Zhang Xiaofeng reminds operators to remain vigilant and not to trust the special booking and other requirements of strangers, especially when it comes to monetary transactions. In a similar situation, you can verify the identity and true intention of the other party through a variety of channels to confirm the legitimacy of the order. If you find a suspicious situation, you should report to the police in time and cooperate with the police investigation. For ordinary people, don't believe any so-called advertisements that make money by swiping bills, and don't trust others to rent or lend their bank cards, phone cards, ID cards, credit cards, Alipay, WeChat and other accounts. Pay attention to the protection of personal information, regularly check the details of various accounts under your name, and report to the bank and the police in time if you find abnormal transactions, so as to avoid your account being stolen without knowing it.
Topic selection and planning|Legal Network Research Institute
Text: Li Sitong
Producer|Yu Yingbo
Editor|Liang Jing
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