The main suspect of the fraud ring, Lin Geng-hong, argued in court that "the startup is not a scam," displaying a more arrogant attitude towards the media than before.

The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office officially filed a lawsuit on April 26. Following lawyer Wang Chen-huan's appearance in court, the Taipei District Court held its first hearing on the 6th, where Lin Geng-hong was first interrogated. Lin denied the charges in court, emphasizing that engaging in cryptocurrency with the highest standards and strictest attitude is for innovation, not for defrauding others.

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Lin Genghong claims legitimate operation: professional team with expertise

According to a report by udn, Lin Genghong emphasized that the executives involved and the employees who wrote the white papers all possess high levels of professional knowledge and conduct legitimate operations with the highest standards and strictest attitudes.

Lin Genghong previously sold virtual currencies such as IBcoin under the name "Qianqiao Team," which became the basis of his defense in this case.

He pointed out that a former prosecutor had told him that virtual currencies could be traded, so he sought out the founder of the ABA accelerator, which received subsidies from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Pan Yizhang, as well as a leading exchange guided by KPMG to professionally operate blockchain and cryptocurrency-related businesses.

According to footage excerpted by Mirror Media, Lin Genghong even made a defiant "YA" gesture as he stepped out of the police car this time.

Legal team: If it's real fraud, it wouldn't be this complicated

Lin Genghong's lawyer Xie Xiechang stated that the leading exchange did not guarantee profits, and all fund custody had complete record evidence, with no intention of hiding or disguising. The IMBA community was not established as a criminal organization for committing fraud.

Another lawyer, Chen Weicheng, pointed out that if Lin Genghong wanted to commit fraud, there would be no need for such a complex operation. IMBA is not a tightly controlled organization; the chairman and branch directors are honorary titles, and as long as performance targets are met, profits and losses are self-accountable.

Lawyer Xue Qinfeng argued that the prosecution's claim that virtual currencies have no value should bear the burden of proof. In addition, joining the IMBA team requires passing an exam, not just recruiting ordinary people for sales.

Prosecution's accusation: Fraudulent methods and concealed money flow

The prosecution's indictment stated that Lin Genghong, Pan Yizhang, Lin Ruojiao, and others knowingly understood that virtual currencies such as MOCT, CSO, FITC, NFTC, and BNAT were essentially codes with low production costs and no practical application prospects. After the virtual currencies were launched, they took advantage of the public's lack of understanding of the principles and transaction methods, established the IMBA direct sales team and various branches for promotion, and through spreading false news and manipulating coin prices, fraudulently induced unspecified individuals to invest and purchase, obtaining approximately over NT$800 million.

Lin Genghong and others instructed subordinates to move and hide the illegal gains in various locations in Taipei and New Taipei City in batches, then transferred them for personal use. A total of over NT$100 million in proceeds was used to purchase and operate the "Lotus Sanctuary" real estate in Yilan as one of the money laundering points. In addition, NT$43 million was handed over to Wang Chenhuan, of which NT$26 million was used as capital injection for the leading exchange, and NT$17 million was used as an investment in a Bangkok law firm. These operations created breakpoints in the money flow, concealing and disguising specific criminal proceeds for money laundering purposes.

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