Attorney Shao Shiwei | A Must-Read for Family Members | How Do We Conduct Criminal Defense Lawyer Meetings? — Taking a Case Involving the Purchase and Sale of Virtual Assets Suspected of the Crime of Illegal Business Operations as an Example

Background

One day, a young man contacted my assistant and said that through an introduction he had learned that I handle many criminal cases involving cryptocurrency, and that his older brother was currently detained in a detention center in a certain place on a charge of illegal business operations.

The younger brother said that the family had in fact already retained two lawyers, but the family members still did not understand why the older brother had been arrested, and understood even less what a "lawyer meeting" can do in a criminal case. He himself was completely unfamiliar with virtual currency and only knew that his older brother ordinarily worked in foreign trade and also bought "Bitcoin."

Frankly, through such fragmentary descriptions, it is difficult for a lawyer to determine the client's role in the transaction chain of the case, and therefore difficult to accurately assess the risk.

However, I noticed that although two lawyers had already met with him, the family still had no clear understanding of the case. I suspect this may be due to communication issues, or possibly because the lawyers lacked sufficient experience in handling this type of case.

So I briefly explained to the family the possible circumstances under which buying and selling virtual assets could be characterized as the crime of illegal business operations. However, to understand what specific role his brother plays in the transaction chain of this type of case, and whether there is sufficient evidence to prove that the client has committed a crime, it is necessary to meet and communicate with the client first.

Setting Off

As soon as the engagement formalities were completed, I set off immediately. First, I took a high-speed train that raced along, the scenery outside the window receding rapidly like film frames; then I transferred to a slow green-skinned train, the clatter of wheels against the rails like the rhythm of an old tune.

(Busy with cases every day, I rarely have the chance to calm down and take a look at the nature along the way.)

After nearly six hours, the train finally pulled slowly into the destination platform, and the sun had not yet set.

I found a small hotel near the detention center and checked in. Opening the window, I could see the square not far away. On a summer evening, elderly people gathered to chat, fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans while watching children chase and play. The heat waves mingled with the evening breeze, making this small town seem quiet and unhurried.

Who would have thought that in this seemingly peaceful place, a virtual asset illegal business operation case involving billions was being handled—of course, I only learned this later.

Meeting Him at Last

Early the next morning, I arrived at the detention center well ahead of time. I was so early that I stood waiting at the gate for half an hour. But until the doors opened at 9 a.m., I was the only lawyer there. Perhaps in a county town, it is rare for lawyers to queue up and schedule meetings in crowds—which was quite nice.

Finally, I met the client. He was not quite what I had imagined. In his younger brother's eyes, the older brother is the eldest son of the family, the pillar of the household, and someone who has done business overseas for years—a person who can give the whole family a sense of security, though with a rather forceful personality. But before me stood a young man, uneasy and nervous, unable to recount the facts completely, his eyes revealing fear and confusion about the unknown.

This is related to the fact that it was his first time experiencing such a situation, but at the same time, it is also related to the characteristics of this type of case itself, because cases of illegal business operations involving virtual currency involve many people, and each person is merely one link in a vast transaction chain. The client sees only his own small segment, so it is naturally difficult for him to understand why the police are accusing him of a crime.

Therefore, I can understand his confusion and bewilderment.

Six hours of interview and communication

I worked to disentangle the threads from his fragmented account, guiding him through extensive questioning to recall more details, so as to determine his role and position in the case and analyze the corresponding legal risks.

This interview lasted a full day, with nearly six hours of communication in the morning and afternoon. I finally understood why, despite two lawyers having already interviewed him, they had not been able to explain to the family what this case was actually about:

This is in fact not the lawyers' problem. The lawyers had already conveyed the client's own words to the family, but the information the client provided was scattered and disjointed, making it very difficult to piece together the complete chain between "buying and selling virtual currency" and "the crime of illegal business operations."

But most importantly, the public security authorities themselves did not understand why the client constituted the crime of illegal business operations. Therefore, whether arresting people or conducting interrogations, they were merely performing official duties. The local public security authorities had never handled this type of case and were completely unfamiliar with what virtual currency is, what types of coin-related cases are suspected of constituting the crime of illegal business operations, what specifically should be investigated at the current investigative stage, and which key points go straight to the heart of the matter.If the person asking the questions does not know what he wants to ask or the purpose of asking, how can the person answering the questions know?

Some may wonder why the public security authorities arrested the person, yet they do not know why the client is suspected of constituting the crime of illegal business operations charged in this case. Because this is acase supervised by the Ministry, and when the locality receives leads designated by higher authorities, it must commence work.

Under my guidance, the client recalled more key details that the public security authorities had never previously asked about but that may go straight to the core of the case. I reminded him that at the next interrogation he must explain these circumstances to the public security authorities.

A lawyer who is good at drawing diagrams

After a full day of discussions, I finally sorted everything out.

To help him understand more intuitively, I also drew several relationship diagrams for him, marking his position in the transaction chain and the potential problems upstream and downstream, and explained the possible future direction of the case and the legal consequences, as well as how to respond at the next interrogation and other issues.

After being in custody for about twenty days, he finally understood for the first time what this matter was really about.

Why was I able to outline the approximate complete facts of the case based solely on the client's fragmentary account, even when the case-handling authorities themselves could not yet understand the connection between the client's conduct and the charges against him? This judgment did not come from a so-called "God's-eye view," but from years of accumulated experience in handling criminal cases and virtual currency criminal defense work (months later, when I saw the procuratorate's case file, I found nothing beyond expectations; indeed, the information content in the case file was far less than the information I obtained from this six-hour meeting).

At the end of the meeting, I said to him: "I have to catch the high-speed train. I have already understood your situation. Based on a preliminary assessment, the GA currently does not have sufficient evidence, soI do not recommend blindly pleading guilty at this stage. This 10 million(Yes, the local GA, before even clarifying the case, demanded 10 million upfront),and I also do not currently recommend paying it, otherwise the lawyer's subsequent defense will be very passive." He nodded.

Racing through the rainstorm

When I came out of the meeting, it was a bit late. I had missed the green train from the county town, so I could only take a taxi from the county town to the city to catch the high-speed train. I quickly hailed a taxi, but unexpectedly, a rainstorm suddenly struck on the way (even though it had been sunny all day until the afternoon). The driver did not dare to drive too fast. During the three-hour taxi ride, I kept staring at my phone to check the time, because this was the only high-speed train from that city to Shanghai that day.

I still remember that the last stretch of the road was a few hundred meters long. The high-speed railway station was right there in front of me, but the traffic was incredibly congested. The driver said, "Get out and run, or you'll miss your train." So I clutched my backpack and set off running through the heavy rain. Fortunately, I made it just in time before the train departed, and I even posted a moment on WeChat to mark the occasion.

To this day, I am very grateful to the man who was willing to give me a ride, because he still had to drive back along the same route in the severe wind and rainstorm. Several drivers before him had all called to ask me to cancel the order.

A perfect day

Next, I still had to take a high-speed train for nearly four hours. Although I felt somewhat exhausted after two days of rushing around, I mustered 120 percent of my energy, pulled my laptop out of my bag, and began to continue sorting through the circumstances of this case. This is because a person's memory is freshest at this moment, and any delay could cause details to be missed.

Very soon, I seemed to enter a state of flow. The babies in the neighboring seats took turns wailing and making a racket, but this did not affect me at all.

At the moment I arrived at Shanghai Station, I had finally systematically organized all the facts and circumstances of this case. I closed my laptop and ended the day's work with great satisfaction, thinking to myself: Hey,it still has to be me! — A lawyer's confidence in their own abilities is also built up one case at a time.

Reporting and communication with the family members

After returning to Shanghai, I once again reviewed the notes I had made on the high-speed train and produced a complete outline for reporting to the family members on the defense plan for this case involving the crime of illegal business operations in virtual currency. I hoped to enable the family members, despite their lack of legal knowledge and unfamiliarity with virtual currency, to fully understand the facts of the case, the legal provisions, the defense approach, and the possible direction of the case.

This is alsowhen family members seek a lawyerthe value they most hope to obtain —clear, actionable and predictable effective information, rather than vague reassurance.

(Figure: Outline of the meeting and communication in this case)

Subsequent developments

The subsequent progress of the case was relatively smooth. I traveled to the locality for two more meetings and communicated fully with the case handler. On the 37th day of the client's detention, we successfully obtained release on bail pending trial.

It is worth noting that the release on bail pending trial in this case was achieved by the client and the lawyer together withstanding the pressure, and on the premise that not a single cent of the nearly ten million in so-called "illegal gains" demanded by the locality was paid,and at the same time without pleading guilty. The result was obtained under such circumstances and was extremely hard-won.

This is the result we won in this case game fraught with information asymmetry by relying on precise risk assessment and judgment.

Otherwise, there could have been two possible consequences:

1. To get the person out as quickly as possible, paying the 10 million promptly, but because the illegal gains far exceeded the filing threshold for a sentence of five years or more, and because the amount was too high, a custodial sentence being imposed; 2. Refusing to plead guilty, resulting in the person being detained in the detention center for a long period until the case concluded.

So obtaining this result was truly not easy.

A few honest words

Although online information is extremely developed today, it must be acknowledged that it is not easy for a client to rely on their own experience and judgment to discern whether a criminal lawyer is reliable and truly competent to handle criminal defense in a criminal case. Even among fellow lawyers, unless they have personally cooperated on a case and fought side by side, it is very difficult to accurately judge another's true professional level based merely on external impressions.

Truly professional criminal defense lawyers are often not directly visible to clients. Because the law itself is an extremely serious matter, when a lawyer conducts detailed legal analysis of a case, the logic and professional judgment involved are obscure and difficult for most clients to understand—after all, expertise is specialized. Since they cannot understand it, it naturally follows that they cannot make accurate judgments.

Therefore, the vast majorityof clients, when choosing defense counsel, rely more on a kind of "sixth sense."

But in any event, it is still sincerely hoped that every client and family member in a criminal case can find a criminal defense lawyer who is truly trustworthy and worthy of being entrusted.