‘Officer, I really didn’t launder money! I just bought a little digital currency; how come my salary card and WeChat are all frozen?’
Mr. Chen from Hangzhou sat in the police station, clutching the freeze notification, his voice trembling. The day before, he bought coins in the C2C section of an exchange and transferred 50,000 yuan to the seller via WeChat as per the procedure. However, the next morning, his WeChat Wallet was frozen, and his salary card couldn’t withdraw any money; he couldn’t even take out the tuition for his child — what devastated him more was that the police freezing his account were from a distant location, and he couldn’t even meet them.
Can you believe it? Clearly, you purchased coins lawfully, without encountering scams or money laundering, yet due to the seller's account being 'problematic,' your hard-earned money instantly becomes 'involved funds.' Recently, I received over 20 similar messages asking 'how to unfreeze' and 'will there be a record left.' Today, let's thoroughly investigate: why do you find yourself 'caught in the crossfire'? How troublesome is it after a freeze? After reading this, at least you can avoid 90% of unforeseen disasters.
1. Why does 'clean money' turn into 'involved funds'? Just because you touched this 'money chain.'
Many people think, 'I trade on compliant platforms, and the money is earned by myself, so there should be no problem,' but the police's investigation logic is not like this — they are focused on the 'flow of funds', regardless of whether you intended it or not.
Mr. Chen's situation is typical: the seller's WeChat account he transferred money to had just received a scam payment three days ago (for example, money from an elderly person who was scammed). The police, in order to 'lock down the cash flow,' will freeze all accounts that transferred money to this account. It's like buying a bottle of water at the supermarket, but the seller sold counterfeit goods yesterday; the police need to 'control' you, the buyer, to investigate.
What's worse is that this kind of freeze is not just 'a few days to be fine.' I've seen the longest case where a fan from Shenzhen had their funds frozen after buying coins in 2022, and it still hasn't been unfrozen almost 3 years later — the police need to investigate the entire fund chain (for example, this 50,000 yuan was transferred from a scammer → seller → to you, and it might have passed through seven or eight hands in between). The freezing period is at least 6 months; if the case is complicated, it is normal to extend the freeze two or three more times, during which your money cannot be touched at all.
2. How miserable is it after being frozen? Not only can you not access your money, but you also have to travel across provinces to 'prove your innocence.'
Don't think that freezing only means 'money can't be used'; the subsequent troubles can make you doubt your life.
To unfreeze, Mr. Chen prepared a whole stack of materials: screenshots of the C2C orders from the exchange (with timestamps), all chat records with the seller (not a single one can be deleted), electronic receipts of bank transfers, a copy of his ID card, and he also had to handwrite a 3-page paper explaining 'why he bought coins', 'whether he knows the seller', and 'whether the money is salary or bonus.'
These materials cannot be submitted online yet; they must be mailed to a police station thousands of miles away or you must go there in person. Mr. Chen works in Hangzhou, and the police that froze his account are from a county in Hebei. He took three days off to fly there and give a statement, spending over 4000 on just flights and hotels. After a week of hassle, the police only said 'wait for notification.'
What’s worse is that even if you run around, you may not be able to get your money back. In these kinds of cases, the seller is often a 'puppet account' (for example, a bank card or WeChat rented from a scammer), and the scam gang behind has already moved the money away. After the police solve the case, less than 10% of the funds can be recovered, and many people ultimately have to admit defeat — just like Mr. Chen, it’s been two months now, and his account is still frozen; every time he explains to his wife, they end up arguing.
Three, 4 'life-saving tricks' to help you avoid 90% of freezing risks.
In fact, this kind of 'unforeseen disaster' can be avoided with proper precautions. Based on the experience of veterans in the industry, these 4 tips must be remembered:
1. Never conduct private transactions outside the platform! Even if the other party says, 'I can give you a discount of 500 yuan for private transfer.'
Last month, a fan tried to save money; after chatting with the seller on the platform, he was lured into transferring money via WeChat privately. As a result, the money went over, but he didn’t receive the coins, and the other party blocked him. What’s worse, later the police showed up and said that the seller's account was involved in fraud, and his money was also frozen.
Remember: the official guarantee channel of the platform is the only safety line. Before making a payment, you must repeatedly verify the seller's account displayed by the platform (such as the last 4 digits of the bank card, whether the WeChat nickname has special symbols) and the information provided by the seller. If even one character does not match, immediately terminate the transaction — scammers love to change to a similar nickname (for example, changing 'Zhang San' to 'Zhang San⁃') to trick you into transferring the wrong amount.
2. Transaction records 'screenshot + backup'; missing one could lead to no proof.
Mr. Chen was able to submit the materials quickly because he has a habit: after each transaction, he immediately takes screenshots of the orders, transfer records, and chat logs and saves them in the cloud. On the other hand, another fan of mine lost his chat logs due to a phone reset, and the police wouldn't acknowledge it, leading to an additional six months of waiting to unfreeze.
Key items to retain: ① Details of the C2C order from the exchange (must show both parties' accounts, time, and amount); ② Transfer proof from WeChat/Alipay/bank (with transaction number); ③ All chat records with the seller (including the account information sent by the other party). It’s best to save them both in the phone album and on the cloud; don’t be lazy!
3. If you discover 'abnormalities,' get angry immediately! Even if it’s only been 10 minutes.
If you haven't received the coins after payment, or if the platform indicates 'seller account abnormality,' don’t wait or delay; do these three things immediately: ① Contact the platform's customer service and request to freeze the transaction order (a legitimate platform can temporarily lock the funds); ② Call local police at 110 to explain the situation and obtain a police report; ③ Send an email to the freezing police (the notification has contact information), proactively stating that you are the victim.
Last year, a fan discovered he hadn’t received the coins and hesitated for 3 days without taking action. As a result, the police determined that he 'knowingly engaged in a fraudulent transaction,' and the difficulty of unfreezing doubled — the more proactive you are, the more you can prove your innocence.
4. Stick to 'old merchants' for transactions; don't frequently change to unfamiliar faces.
Veteran players in the industry know that finding reliable compliant merchants for transactions can reduce risks by half. These merchants often provide business licenses, ID cards of legal persons (with sensitive information blurred), and even video calls to confirm identities, while those 'one-time sellers' will either block you or send you a blurry screenshot to fool you if you ask for credentials.
How to judge if a merchant is reliable? Look at the platform rating (at least above 4.8), the number of transactions (over 10,000 orders), and whether they support 'small trial transactions' (try transferring 1,000 yuan first). I have fixed transactions with 3 merchants for 5 years without any issues.
Lastly, let’s be honest: your money cannot withstand a 'freeze.'
Recently, Mr. Chen left a message in the background saying that his account was finally unfrozen, but he hasn’t had a peaceful sleep in the past two months and almost missed paying his mortgage due to not being able to withdraw his salary. He said, 'I will never dare to buy coins casually again; even if I want to buy, I must engrave these 4 tips in my mind.'
Making money in the crypto space is difficult; keeping money is even harder. Don’t think that 'freezing' is far from you; in the past six months alone, 37 fans I know fell victim to it. Rather than running around to defend your rights afterward, it’s better to spend 5 minutes now memorizing these tips — after all, for ordinary people like us, our hard-earned money truly cannot withstand such turmoil of being 'caught in the crossfire.'
Let’s discuss in the comments: Have you ever encountered account abnormalities? How did you resolve it at the time? Share it so more people can avoid pitfalls. Follow me, and later I will teach you how to check 'whether your account has risk of involvement in a case' to avoid potential issues.
