Fake registration using stolen information, "sales without delivery," and issuing false invoices—an exposé of the case involving a criminal gang led by Chen Mingxiong issuing fraudulent VAT invoices

Recently, the First Tax Inspection Bureau of the Tianjin Municipal Taxation Bureau of the State Taxation Administration, together with departments including public security economic investigation, according to举报线索 (tip-off leads), lawfully investigated and handled a case involving the criminal syndicate led by Chen Mingxiong that illegally issued VAT invoices.

Upon investigation, in 2024, the criminal syndicate led by Chen Mingxiong purchased citizens’ information through illegal channels and used it to register and establish 346 enterprises, including Tianjin Haoyu Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. In the absence of real business transactions, it fraudulently issued 7,846 VAT standard (ordinary) invoices to external parties.

In March 2025, the First Tax Inspection Bureau of the Tianjin Municipal Taxation Bureau of the State Taxation Administration, pursuant to relevant laws and regulations, determined that the 7,846 VAT standard (ordinary) invoices issued by 346 enterprises including Tianjin Haoyu Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. were fraudulent (illegally issued).

In November 2025, the two principal offenders, Chen Mingxiong and Chen Qiang, for the crime of fraudulently issuing invoices, were each sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of six years and five years respectively, and were fined. At the same time, the tax authorities have, in accordance with the law, carried out investigation and verification or filed for case review and inspection of 1,936 downstream invoiced (receiver) enterprises.

Mass invoice issuance followed by a rapid escape Abnormal operations draw attention

Earlier on, the First Tax Inspection Bureau of the Tianjin Municipal Taxation Bureau of the State Taxation Administration received a举报线索 (tip-off lead). The whistleblower reported that, without being aware, he had been registered as the legal representative of a company, and that the corresponding company operations were anomalous. Faced with this risk lead, the inspection department promptly verified the actual operating situation of Tianjin Haoyu Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. and other companies whose information was involved in the lead.

After investigation, inspectors found that Haoyu Agricultural’s main business was “agricultural, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery” technology extension services. In May 2024, without having any VAT input credits, it issued 10 VAT standard (ordinary) invoices in a concentrated manner. The invoice descriptions were relatively singular—all were agricultural products “GrainOats” and “Chinese herbal medicinal materialsSilybum marianum.” A series of abnormal manifestations—including “sales without inputs,” concentrated invoice issuance, and a rapid escape—raised the inspectors’ high vigilance.

Using others’ information to fraudulently issue invoices Data profiling pinpoints the net

Inspectors conducted in-depth analysis in combination with relevant leads and found that the enterprise had suspicion of group-based fraudulent invoice issuance. After expanding the verification, it was found that the enterprises involved in the syndicate numbered more than 340. The identity information of the personnel of those enterprises was false, the registration information was false, and the bank account transaction流水 information showed that the enterprises within the syndicate had no capital exchanges with each other.

To ascertain the truth, the tax authorities and the public security economic investigation department jointly established a task force to conduct analysis and judgment of the leads. By profiling the illegal conduct and, based on key characteristics such as the syndicate members’ professionalization, the digitalization of criminal methods, a very strong anti-investigation awareness, and quantifiable patterns of criminal behavior, they quickly identified the identity of the actual controller and carried out an arrest operation. They successfully dismantled three criminal hideouts, apprehended two criminal suspects, Chen Mingxiong and Chen Qiang, and successfully dismantled the entire criminal syndicate.

The truth of the case comes to light The full invoice-fraud chain is reconstructed

The actual controllers of the syndicate companies, including Chen Mingxiong, confessed to the process of “fraudulently issuing invoices by misusing information.” The syndicate purchased citizens’ information through illegal channels and registered 346 “shell” companies. In accordance with the “invoice-purchasing needs” of downstream enterprises, they fraudulently issued VAT standard (ordinary) invoices to external parties and collected invoice-issuing fees at a certain ratio. After investigation, the syndicate cumulatively fraudulently issued 7,846 VAT standard (ordinary) invoices to external parties, involving 1,936 downstream invoiced (receiver) enterprises, and the total value of the invoices involved was as high as 1.2 billion yuan.

Article 21, Paragraph 2 of the “Measures for the Administration of Invoices of the People’s Republic of China” provides: Any unit or individual shall not commit any of the following acts of fraudulent invoice issuance: (1) issuing invoices for others or for oneself that do not correspond to the actual operating business situation; (2) causing others to issue invoices for oneself that do not correspond to the actual operating business situation; (3) introducing others to issue invoices that do not correspond to the actual operating business situation.

The First Tax Inspection Bureau of the Tianjin Municipal Taxation Bureau of the State Taxation Administration determined that the 7,846 VAT standard (ordinary) invoices issued on behalf of others by 346 enterprises including Tianjin Haoyu Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. were fraudulent (illegally issued). In November 2025, the two principal offenders, Chen Mingxiong and Chen Qiang, for the crime of fraudulently issuing invoices, were each sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of six years and five years respectively, and were fined. At the same time, the tax authorities have, in accordance with the law, carried out investigation and verification or filed for case review and inspection of 1,936 downstream invoiced (receiver) enterprises.

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