LONDON >> As Chinese police closed in on the architect of a massive Ponzi scheme that cost thousands their life savings, a woman in her mid-40s was taken by an accomplice to the Myanmar border on a moped to begin nearly seven years on the run.

After zig-zagging across Southeast Asia, she landed at London’s Heathrow airport in September 2017 on a forged St Kitts and Nevis passport in the name of Zhang Yadi.

Until her arrest in April 2024, Zhang – whose real name was Qian Zhimin – converted bitcoin into cash to buy jewellery and luxury goods, travelling with an assistant across Europe while avoiding countries that extradite to China.

Before and during Qian’s sentencing this week, prosecutors and police cited documents collected during their investigation, plus information from Chinese aut

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