Southampton University student accused of laundering crime-gang cash tied to online paedophile network

Southampton University student Huanyu Zhou, 27, is accused of laundering large sums for an international crime gang that sold child pornography through social media sites. Zhou was arrested in her halls of residence at Southampton University after a major Interpol-led operation involving the FBI and the National Crime Agency. Prosecutors say the group used mainstream platforms such as X, Discord and Telegram to distribute child abuse material and to move money earned from the trade.

Authorities say more than £216,000 was paid into Zhou's cryptocurrency account between February 5 and October 28, 2023, from wallets tied to the online trade. A Louis Vuitton bag was recovered from her room when National Crime Agency investigators searched Mayflower Halls, and images on her phone showed other designer items. Before her arrest, Zhou is said to have arranged a VIP personal shopper visit to the Bicester Designer Village and made seven trips to Europe, including Iceland, Austria and Hungary, between February and June 2024. [Image]

According to the Crown, the group advertised and sold material through a scheme described as an 'Invite Child Abuse Pyramid.' The operation, conducted on the clear web rather than the dark web, broadened its client base by posting links on platforms like Discord, Telegram and Twitter that led users to previews designed to entice further purchases. The most expensive tier allegedly offered access to more than four terabytes of material—roughly one million still images, about 1,000 videos and millions of documents.

The prosecution says Zhou was a knowing and willing conduit, possessing and transferring cryptocurrency funds generated by the sale to customers and to pay for internet services enabling the material's reach, for the period between March 2022 and July 2024. The FBI linked her to the activity through an undercover and digital investigation. Zhou was arrested at Mayflower Halls on July 4 of last year and two devices, an iPhone 14 and an iPad, were seized. Items found in her student accommodation included Louis Vuitton bags and Burberry products.

Deposits into five UK bank accounts—totalling tens of thousands of pounds—were opened between September 28 and December 22, 2023, including about £31,963 into the accounts. The source of the cash remains largely unexplained, the Crown said, prompting questions about why a student would need multiple accounts. Zhou's defence contends that her boyfriend, Jinfeng Li, used her details to open crypto and other accounts without her knowledge. Zhou has said she was focused on her studies and did not spot references to child sex abuse in messages from him. She described the Bicester trip as window shopping and said she flew on budget airlines with no baggage allowance for the trips abroad, adding that if she had known what he was doing, she would not have allowed him to use her name.

Zhou's arrest is said to have directly impacted the crime gang, which removed domains from the internet and deleted Telegram accounts used for payments. The Internet Watch Foundation, which monitors and removes online child sex abuse material, noted a sharp drop in reports about Invite Child Abuse Pyramid sites within three days of Zhou's arrest, the court heard. Prosecutors argued the gang sought to dissociate from Zhou, and that the arrest disrupted its operations. The trial continues as Zhou remains on trial for the charges against her.