Jiangsu ＂inspirational＂ female boss illegally raised 288 million yuan and was sentenced to 9 years in prison and fined 450,000 yuan.
(Reporter of Legal Network Ma Chao correspondent of Legal Network Zhang Lili Zhu Jie) Chen Shangmei, 59 years old, worked as a garment factory worker and a dry cleaner owner in her early years. At the age of 52, she "switched careers" and started Jiangsu Guangyuan Bean Products Co., Ltd., and at the same time, she also has dazzling auras such as a member of Yangzhong CPPCC and the chairman of Yangzhong Chamber of Commerce, and is known as an "inspirational" female entrepreneur.
However, because the initial investment of Jiangsu Guangyuan Bean Products Co., Ltd. was too large to make ends meet, in order to maintain the operation of the enterprise, Chen Shangmei, who had originally raised a small amount of money among relatives and friends around her and had a good reputation, began to raise funds illegally on a large scale. She illegally absorbed 288 million yuan of public deposits from more than 800 victims in five years by issuing loan certificates and promising annual interest rates ranging from 20% to 30%, resulting in direct economic losses of 281 million yuan.
On April 21, the People’s Court of Yangzhong City, Jiangsu Province, filed a public prosecution, and made a public judgment in the first instance on this extraordinarily serious case of illegally absorbing public deposits. The defendant Chen Shangmei was sentenced to 9 years’ imprisonment and fined 450,000 yuan for the crime of illegally absorbing public deposits.
The owner of the dry cleaner started the company as the boss.
Become a well-known female entrepreneur
Chen Shangmei was once known as an "inspirational" female boss. Born in 1957, she is a native of Funing County, Jiangsu Province. She has only a primary school education. She worked as a garment factory worker and a dry cleaner owner in her early years. At the age of 52, she changed careers and became a well-known entrepreneur. She was the legal representative of Jiangsu Guangyuan Bean Products Co., Ltd., a member of the Ninth CPPCC in Yangzhong City and the chairman of Yangzhong Chamber of Commerce.
When Chen Shangmei ran a dry cleaner, she began to raise small amounts of money among relatives and friends around her, and promised to give some interest. Since it was only a small loan at the beginning, the profit earned by Chen Shangmei Laundry was enough to cope with it. Being warm and humble, Chen Shangmei has accumulated a good reputation and many ordinary people trust her.
Later, Chen Shangmei ended the dry cleaner business and set up Guangyuan Bean Products Co., Ltd.. In 2013, it was renamed Jiangsu Guangyuan Food Science and Technology Group, and its business scope expanded from the production and sales of bean products to the fields of catering and logistics, and once became a leading agricultural enterprise in Zhenjiang City.
The high interest return, plus the bright aura of the chairman of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and members of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, have increased the trust of some ignorant people in Chen Shangmei, and even some people who don’t know her at all are willing to lend money to her through acquaintances.
Businessmen, farmers and strangers lent her money one after another.
Borrowed 288 million yuan from more than 800 people in five years.
Sign your name on a blank piece of paper, noting the interest and principal. This is the IOU that Chen Shangmei calls others. The money that should have been used for the company’s operation finally entered Chen Shangmei’s private account through transfer. According to reports, among the more than 800 fund-raising households, there are not only businessmen who are all-powerful in business, but also ordinary farmers who save money.
However, the bean products that once appeared in various stalls in Yangzhong did not bring a lot of profits to the company. The output value of only 4 million yuan a year is equivalent to operating at a loss. In order to keep the company going, Chen Shangmei started to borrow a large amount of money in 2009, and the interest rose from the initial one point and two points to two points and three points or even five or six points, which were also calculated according to the daily interest rate and monthly interest rate.
In 2011, Chen Shangmei borrowed 25 million yuan and needed to pay more than 5 million yuan in interest. In 2012, the loan reached 40 million, and the interest needed to be paid was about 10 million.
At this time, some creditors began to ask for money, and Chen Shangmei, who had no money in her hand, could only continue to borrow money from others, falsely claiming that it was used for enterprise capital turnover. In the second half of 2014, Chen Shangmei could not borrow any more money, and the case broke out.
On December 3, 2014, Chen Shangmei was arrested. On September 29, 2015, Yangzhong City Procuratorate filed a public prosecution against Chen Shangmei for illegally absorbing public deposits.
The court found that from 2009 to 2014, Chen Shangmei illegally absorbed funds from the public in the name of production, operation and investment with high interest returns as bait. Chen Shangmei illegally absorbed 288 million yuan of public deposits from more than 800 victims by issuing loan certificates and promising annual interest rates ranging from 20% to 30%, resulting in direct economic losses of 281 million yuan.
The court held that Chen Shangmei’s behavior constituted the crime of illegally absorbing public deposits. After the incident, Chen Shangmei voluntarily surrendered himself. When the public security organ questioned him, he was able to truthfully confess his criminal facts and surrendered himself. According to relevant regulations, he can be given a lighter or mitigated punishment according to law. In the end, Chen Shangmei was sentenced to 9 years in prison and fined 450,000 yuan.