Guizhou Duyun Public Security Bureau practices virtual currency storage involved in the case: frozen and then seized in cold wallets for physical isolation

PANews reported on August 17th that, according to China News Service, after China strictly banned virtual currency transactions in 2021, the preservation and disposal of virtual currencies involved in criminal cases has become a thorny issue for local police. Recently, reporters accompanied the Ministry of Public Security's "Guardians Under the Sun" law-based public security publicity campaign on a visit to the Duyun City Property Management Center in Qiannan Buyi and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou Province, to learn about local police practices in preserving virtual currencies involved in criminal cases. During the investigation, police discovered that suspects had converted illegally obtained funds into virtual currency. During the seizure process, Duyun police froze the virtual currencies involved and seized them in cold wallets established by the police for physical isolation. The funds are then stored at the Duyun City Property Management Center, awaiting a court ruling. The Duyun City Police Department's exploration of this approach has provided a solution to the problem of preserving virtual currencies involved in criminal cases, and local authorities are still searching for better solutions. Duyun Police are reportedly focusing on the difficulties in preserving, transferring, and disposing of criminal property, actively exploring reforms in property management, and promoting the establishment of a cross-departmental property management center. Since the center was completed and put into use in November 2022, it has received 24,753 items involved in the case, more than 20.4955 million yuan in funds involved in the case, and centralized the storage of more than 7,000 files of various cases.