The USB carried by Ke Wenzhe raised suspicions about cold wallets

Recently, the investigation into Taiwan People's Party Chairman Ke Wenzhe's alleged involvement in the Jinghua City case has been heating up. The USB carried by Ke Wenzhe became the focus. Former staff member Wu Jingyi also speculated in the political commentary program "Come on New Taiwan" that this USB may not be an ordinary data storage device, but a cold wallet specifically used to store cryptocurrency assets. Other guests even said bluntly: "No wonder he didn't even look for his phone when he dropped it, but he had to carry the USB with him!"

Wu Jingyi herself also posted today: "According to media reports, Inspector went to several branches of First Bank to access records and seized mysterious safes!" She also mentioned that bank safes are usually used to store high-value or important items. , based on the experience of past cracked cases, it is possible for data storage devices (hard drives, USB devices, containing highly sensitive or important data or digital assets such as cryptocurrency) to appear. These remarks have attracted widespread attention from the outside world, and the authenticity of cold wallets has become a hot topic of discussion recently.

Source: Facebook Wu Jingyi’s personal Facebook post stated that the “mysterious safe” may contain digital assets such as cryptocurrency.

A cold wallet, also known as an offline wallet, is a device used to store digital currency. Because it is not connected to the Internet, it can effectively prevent hacker attacks and is a common safe storage method for cryptocurrency holders. If you want to know more about cold wallets, you can read the article "What is a Cold Wallet?" previously compiled by "Crypto City". 》.

The connection between the Jinghua City case and cryptocurrency

As one of the core figures in the Jinghua City case, Shen Qingjing, the founder of Weiking Group, is under investigation by prosecutors for allegedly bribing Taiwanese officials. The news pointed out that Shen Qingjing has a close relationship with Macau casinos and may use cryptocurrency to launder money through the casinos and transfer huge bribes back to Taiwan. According to sources, casinos usually use fake accounts to launder money, hiding funds in encrypted wallets through cryptocurrency, and then transferring them back across countries.

At present, prosecutor Chen Minjin has joined the case investigation team and is responsible for clarifying the flow of cryptocurrency. Whether some funds flowed into Ke Wenzhe's cold wallet has become a key investigation direction. Xiao Yihong, the appointed lawyer of Ke Wenzhe's camp, also has the professional background of "CHE Hacking Technology Expert Certification" and "CHFI Information Security Forensic Investigation Expert". Therefore, lawyer Chen Yiwen also said in the program: "Both parties are looking for someone with a similar background." Only then can people have the opportunity to conduct effective offense and defense in court.”

Source: Screenshot of a clip from the "Come on New Taiwan" program. The lawyer appointed by Ke Wenzhe also has encryption-related experience, which will be helpful in court offense and defense with prosecutor Chen Minjin of the Beijing Prosecutor's Office.

Ko has publicly spoken about the potential of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology in the past, adding to speculation that he may own crypto assets. As for whether this USB incident is really related to cryptocurrency, further investigation results still need to be awaited.

Celebrity Observations and the Possibility of Cold Wallets

In addition to the above-mentioned discussion by famous speakers, Wu Zijia, chairman of Formosa Electronic News, also pointed out in the political commentary program "Critical Moment" that because Ke Wenzhe attaches unusual importance to USB, it is speculated that the private key of the cryptocurrency wallet may be stored in it, which is why he They will procrastinate during inspections and searches, and may even be reluctant to open the door. He believes that Ke Wenzhe may have used this time to process the digital assets in the USB to avoid seizure by the prosecutor.

However, if the USB is really a cold wallet, once it is lost, although the device cannot be recovered, as long as the holder remembers the private key or mnemonic phrase, the wallet can still be restored on other devices. This is also the reason why cold wallets are held by cryptocurrency. One of the reasons why some people like it. Therefore, Ke Wenzhe’s frequent inspections and cautious behavior towards this USB have further deepened the current suspicion that he may have a cold wallet.

Source: Screenshot of the "Critical Moment" program segment. Wu Zijia pointed out that Ke Wenzhe attached great importance to USB and speculated that the private key of the cryptocurrency wallet may be stored in it.

Challenges in tracing cryptocurrency financial flows?

Although cryptocurrency transactions are highly anonymous in some cases, as more and more exchanges implement KYC regulations, coupled with the popularity of on-chain tracking platforms (such as Arkham, MetaSleuth), and many righteous and courageous On-chain detectives emerge, and the true identity of cryptocurrency transactions is gradually linked to cash flows. If Ke Wenzhe really uses cryptocurrency to conduct bribery or other illegal transactions, the transaction records through centralized exchanges may still be traced.

Source: Arkham Arkham’s diagram of tracking wallet cash flow

Source: MetaSleuth MetaSleuth tracking wallet cash flow diagram

The investigation into the Ke Wenzhe USB incident and whether it involved cryptocurrency secret accounts has undoubtedly added more mystery to the Jinghua City case. This incident also demonstrated the potential role of cryptocurrencies in current political and legal cases, and caused the outside world to rethink how to effectively supervise and track the flow of digital assets.

Although there are still many speculations about whether Ke Wenzhe uses USB as a cold wallet to hide cryptocurrency assets, until the investigation has not disclosed specific evidence, all this is still within the scope of speculation.

["Crypto City" Reminder] Everyone should be presumed innocent until proven guilty in a public trial in accordance with the law.