introduction

With the rapid expansion of virtual currency around the world, the legal issues surrounding it are becoming increasingly complex, especially in criminal justice practice. The crime of assisting information network criminal activities (abbreviated as "assisting crime") and the crime of concealing and hiding criminal proceeds and the proceeds of criminal proceeds (abbreviated as "concealing crime"), as the two most frequently applied crimes in the chain of virtual currency crimes, often overlap and confuse in terms of facts and legal application.

This confusion not only affects the judicial organs' accurate identification of the case, but also directly relates to the severity of the defendant's sentencing. Although both crimes are important tools of the criminal law to combat information network crimes and money laundering, they differ significantly in terms of subjective intent, behavior, and sentencing range.

Through case analysis, legal analysis and practical experience, this article will explore in depth how to accurately distinguish between the crime of aiding and abetting and the crime of concealing in virtual currency crimes, and provide practical reference for relevant practitioners.

1. Case Introduction

Let’s first use a practical case to look at the difference between the court’s judgments on the crime of aiding and abetting a crime involving currency and the crime of concealing a crime. In the case of Chen Si et al. concealing a crime sentenced by the Intermediate People’s Court of Jiaozuo City, Henan Province ((2022) Yu 08 Criminal Final No. 50), the basic facts of the case are as follows:

In December 2020, Li Ganggang and others, knowing that others needed bank cards to transfer proceeds of crime, organized Chen Si and others to use bank cards to transfer proceeds of crime; Chen Si and others, knowing that Li Ganggang and others used bank cards to transfer proceeds of crime, provided their own real-name Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, and Postal Savings Bank cards to participate in the transfer (part of which was transferred after purchasing virtual currency), and listened to online chat groups to keep accounts and reconcile accounts. According to statistics from the investigation agency, the three bank cards provided by Chen Si transferred more than 147,000 yuan in fraudulent funds;

In February 2021, Li Ganggang and others were arrested by the public security organs. However, Chen Si and others continued to organize others to use bank cards to transfer the proceeds of others' crimes, or to transfer money by purchasing virtual currency, with the amount involved reaching more than 441,000 yuan.

The first instance court found Chen Si guilty of concealment and sentenced him to four years in prison and a fine of 20,000 yuan.

However, Chen Si and his defense lawyer believed that the first instance court had misclassified the case and that the case should be charged with the lighter crime of aiding and abetting rather than the heavier crime of concealing information. However, the second instance court did not support the defendant and his lawyer’s view and ultimately rejected the appeal, upholding the original verdict.

This case illustrates well the common focus of controversy among the prosecution, defense and judges when transferring upstream illegal and criminal proceeds through virtual currency, namely the applicability of the crimes of aiding and abetting and concealing crimes.

2. Scope of application of assistance and concealment in cryptocurrency criminal cases

In criminal cases in the cryptocurrency industry, the applicable boundaries of the crime of aiding and abetting and the crime of concealing are usually closely related to the actor’s role positioning, subjective level of understanding, and the consequences of the behavior. Although both crimes require the actor to be “knowingly” guilty, upon closer inspection, the applicable scenarios of the two crimes are actually quite different:

1. Typical application scenarios of the crime of aiding and abetting

The crime of aiding and abetting refers to the act of knowing that others use information networks to commit crimes and providing them with technical support, promotion and diversion, payment settlement, network storage, communication transmission, etc. For the cryptocurrency circle, common acts of aiding and abetting crimes include:

1. Assist fraud gangs to collect and transfer coins;

2. Knowing that it is a "black U" or black money but still providing address transfer services;

3. Provide a virtual currency wallet address for "running points" or transfer.

The key point of this crime is that the "assisting" behavior directly facilitates information network crimes without necessarily aiming at obtaining ultimate profits.

2. Typical application scenarios of the crime of concealment

The crime of concealment focuses more on helping upstream criminals deal with "stolen money", which is specifically manifested in the fact that the perpetrators, knowing that it is the proceeds of crime or its benefits, still assist in the transfer, acquisition, holding on behalf of others, exchange, etc. Its common manifestations include:

1. Purchase virtual currency obtained by others through fraud;

2. Knowing that the money is black money, they still "launder" it or convert it into legal currency;

3. Acts such as safekeeping and cash withdrawal on behalf of others.

The crime of concealment emphasizes that the perpetrator helps "digest the stolen goods", which is closer to "money laundering" in the traditional sense. Its premise is a clear understanding of the proceeds of crime.

Therefore, the applicable boundaries of the two crimes lie in the stage at which the behavior occurs, the object of subjective knowledge, and whether the behavior directly contributes to the success of the crime, or is a post-event disposal of the results of the crime.

3. How to accurately distinguish between the crime of aiding and abetting and the crime of concealing something?

To accurately distinguish between these two crimes, we need to make a comprehensive judgment based on subjective mentality, objective behavior and objective evidence of the case, and we cannot simply apply the crimes. The following three aspects are crucial:

1. The objects of subjective knowledge are different

1. Aid crime : The perpetrator must be aware of "others using information networks to commit crimes". That is, knowing that others are committing network violations such as telecommunications fraud, gambling, and infringing on citizens' personal information (only general knowledge is required), and still providing assistance.

2. Concealment crime : The perpetrator must be aware that "the property being handled is the proceeds of crime". That is, it is not necessary to know the specific details of the original criminal act, but only to know that "the property or virtual currency being handled is stolen money".

In other words, the "knowledge" of the crime of aiding and abetting refers to the knowledge of the criminal act itself, while the "knowledge" of the crime of concealing refers to the knowledge of the proceeds of the crime.

2. The behavior occurred at different times

1. The crime of aiding and abetting usually occurs during or before the crime is committed , playing the role of "assisting";

2. Concealment of crime usually occurs after the crime has been committed and serves the purpose of "laundering stolen goods".

For example, if you help a scammer open a virtual currency wallet and participate in fund transfers, you may be guilty of aiding and abetting fraud; but if the scammer has completed the fraud and hands the currency over to someone else to hold or sell, the other party may be guilty of concealment.

(III) Whether it facilitates the completion of a crime

There is often a strong causal relationship between concealment and criminal results. For example, without running points and transferring money, the fraud gang’s funds cannot be sold. Although the crime of aiding and abetting also involves helping the upstream crime to “cash in the proceeds”, it does not determine whether the upstream crime can be established.

Finally, let's talk about judicial practice suggestions. For defense lawyers, you can start defense from the following two levels:

The first is the evidence level : it is necessary to focus on analyzing the way the perpetrator obtained the currency, whether the communication records mentioned the upstream crime, and whether there is a "laundering" intention in the direction of the currency.

The second is the subjective level : if the defendant did not clearly know that the upstream behavior was a crime, and only knew that "the money was dirty", he should consider applying the crime of aiding and abetting, and advocate for "minor crime" treatment.

IV. Conclusion

With the support of virtual currency's highly anonymous, easy cross-border, decentralized and other technologies, the difficulty of applying criminal law has increased significantly, and the boundary between the crime of aiding and abetting and the crime of concealing has become increasingly blurred. However, it is precisely in this blurred boundary that criminal lawyers in the Web3 field should assume the responsibility of "legal translators", not only mastering the skills of traditional criminal defense, but also deeply understanding the underlying logic and practical uses of virtual currency.

From the perspective of criminal policy, the precise application of light and heavy charges is related to the modesty of the law and the realization of justice. From the perspective of protecting personal rights, whether the crime of aiding and abetting and the crime of concealing can be accurately distinguished directly determines the fate of the people involved.

In the future, with the further standardization of judicial practice and the gradual improvement of the legal system of virtual currency, the application of law in this field will become clearer. But before that, every distinction of charges in criminal cases in the cryptocurrency circle is a severe test of lawyers' professional ability and sense of responsibility.