Fourteen months following the murder of her husband, alleged money launderer Caixuan Qin has reached an agreement with the B.C. Director of Civil Forfeiture to relinquish over $1 million in cash, casino chips and partial proceeds of a property sale.
The B.C. government and Qin reached the agreement on Nov. 29 via a consent order filed in B.C. Supreme Court.
Qin forfeits a total of $1.14 million in cash previously seized by police from her illegal Richmond underground bank, or so-called money service business Silver International Investments Ltd., as well as safety deposit boxes at Royal Bank and Bank of China. She also forfeits $17,800 in River Rock Casino and Resort chips and, among other miscellaneous items, 94 gift cards.
Qin does get to keep 55% of the proceeds of the sale of her home at 2375 Burquitlam Dr. in Vancouver. The order states Qin will pay $192,725.18 to the Ministry of Finance.
Representing Qin and Silver International in the case was Greg DelBigio, who also represented Paul King Jin at the Commission of Inquiry into Money Laundering in B.C. Lawyer Wayne Ma conducted the property conveyancing. Striking the deal for the government were lawyers Andrew Gay and Clayton Gallant.
In April 2015, a federal RCMP investigation was launched into Silver International, alleged to have been laundering up to $1.5 million in illicit drug proceeds per day, primarily through local casinos.
The couple allegedly emptied drug-laced cash from suitcases onto the floors of Silver International, routinely.
The investigation resulted in charges against Silver International and the company’s two principal operators, Qin and her husband Jain Jun Zhu, who was said to be the “operating mind” of the alleged scheme, which was estimated by the director to be a $220-million-per-year operation.
The business allegedly catered to local, Mexican and Chinese organized crime rings. It was allegedly integral to the so-called “Vancouver Model” wherein locally-earned drug proceeds were turned into assets or gambling losses here but paid back in China via Silver’s network.
The investigation was turfed by Crown prosecutors for undisclosed reasons in November 2018, although sources have told Glacier Media a technical error led to the identification of a police informant to the defendants’ legal team.
The civil forfeiture case was launched immediately thereafter.
Qin and Zhu initially denied any wrongdoing and said the search and seizures violated their Charter rights. At one point, their assets were ordered to be released but an appeal by the government in October 2019 re-froze them until the forfeiture claim could be settled.
The director’s initial claim noted $2 million in cash was seized and so it remains unclear where the remainder rests, if not with Qin. The consent agreement does not indicate a split of “the money.”
On Sept. 18, 2020, Zhu was shot to death in Richmond’s Manzo restaurant while dining with alleged money launderer Jin, who was injured by a bullet from the alleged attack.
Richard Charles Reed has been charged with the first-degree murder of Zhu.
“Although charges were laid, this investigation continues,” said Sgt. David Lee with the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team on Nov. 17. “There are additional persons involved in this brazen shooting. Homicide investigators are still investigating and will seek out and arrest all those who are responsible.”
Jin is an alleged customer of Silver International and also faces several civil forfeiture claims. He has a previous criminal record with convictions for aggravated assault, sexual assault and sexual exploitation, stated one of the director’s claims.
