Li Dong (pseudonym), a 40-something information security specialist from Shenzhen who worked at major internet firms and later ran his own company, invested in stocks and crypto (mainly Bitcoin) starting around 2016.
In 2024, police in Zhangjiajie (Hunan) and Changge (Henan) separately investigated him, initially charging “operating a gambling venue” based on links to an overseas gambling site (“Kaiyun Sports” / 开云体育). Both forces seized his Bitcoin:
• Zhangjiajie: 103 BTC → cashed out ≈49.61 million RMB
• Changge: ≈80 BTC → value >40 million RMB
• Total seized crypto assets >80 million RMB
Zhangjiajie later changed the charge to “illegally obtaining computer data” and granted bail. Four days later, Changge police re-detained him, shifting charges to theft and infringement of citizens’ personal information, then formally arrested him in October 2024.
In July 2025, Changge Procuratorate indicted him on two counts:
1. Infringement of personal information Allegation: In 2020, he exploited a server vulnerability on Kaiyun Sports to illegally obtain personal data of >1.84 million Chinese citizens (some from Xuchang/Changge areas).
2. Theft Allegation: He replaced bank accounts of certain platform agents with his own, diverting >35.5 million RMB in rebates. ≈6.44 million RMB went to his bank cards; >29.05 million RMB was converted to Bitcoin and sent to his wallet.
Li Dong and his lawyers plead not guilty, arguing:
• Electronic evidence questionable (unsealed hard drives, modification traces)
• Personal data incomplete and no profit made from it
• No direct proof linking stolen funds to him
• Confession allegedly coerced (threats involving pregnant wife); seek to exclude illegal evidence
Prosecutors insist facts and evidence are clear and seek combined punishment.
Trial opened January 5, 2026, at Changge City Court. On January 7, court adjourned after defense requested electronic data; as of January 19, 2026, no new date announced.