One morning in November 2018, residents on the 15th floor of a community in Qiaoxi District, Xingtai City, Hebei Province found that the elevator door was painted with bright red characters "Zhang Hong" and "pay back". The white wall of the corridor and the unit door of a family were also painted with the same words, which was particularly eye-catching.
Zhang Hong was named and spewed words in the corridor because he had borrowed money on the Internet. Since September 2018, he has borrowed 10000 yuan from online loan companies and signed a Yin Yang contract with "beheading interest". Later, the lender lured him to continue lending to support the loan by raising the loan limit and reducing the interest rate. Half a year later, he has paid off more than 4.07 million yuan in more than a dozen online loan companies, but he still has nearly 600000 yuan of debt, which is really not enough.
The corridor of Zhang Hong's family was sprayed with red paint because he could not pay back the money. Photograph provided by respondents
On November 23, 2018, Zhang Hong reported the case to Qiaoxi Branch of Xingtai Public Security Bureau in Hebei Province. Four months later, the Qiaoxi Branch found the online loan company that lent money to Zhang Hong, and arrested this routine loan gang across Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.
According to Liang Chao, a police officer of the Third Criminal Police Squadron of the Qiaoxi Branch, all 16 suspects of the gang have been arrested. After investigation, the case involved more than 1500 victims with a total amount of 200 million yuan.
In recent years, there has been a high incidence of cases of "routine loans" in the name of private lending across the country. On April 9, 2019, the Supreme Court, the Supreme Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the Opinions on Several Issues Concerning Handling Criminal Cases of "Routine Loans", which clearly defined the difference between "routine loans" and private lending, and required that "routine loans" be severely punished according to law.
I want to borrow thousands of dollars to pay back my credit card
Wang Ming, who is in his 30s, never thought he would fall into a routine loan.
He is a salesperson of a beverage company in Zhejiang Province, with a monthly income of nearly 10000 yuan. He also has a small business of his own, which can earn some extra money. He is a high-income person in the local area.
In September 2018, because of business difficulties, Wang Ming needed thousands of yuan to turn around. He didn't want to worry his family or ask his friends and relatives for money. When he was worried, a strange phone call came. The other party claimed to be a small loan company, reported Wang Ming's name directly and asked him if he needed to borrow money.
Wang Ming, who was already short of money, asked casually: How can I borrow? The other side said that as long as the information is submitted online for review, the loan can be made. "What about the interest?" Instead of directly answering his question, the other party said about the loan amount: "It depends on the audit results. It's not certain that the loan amount is 230000 yuan or 25000 yuan." Wang Ming didn't think too much about it, and directly added WeChat friends with the other party.
In fact, it was an accident that Wang Ming was "targeted" by online loan companies. After the gang was arrested, Ah Jie, the suspect in charge of loan review, told the police handling the case that most of the customer resources came from a network platform. The online loan company spent 40000 to 50000 yuan to buy an account on the platform, which contains various customer information including name, mobile phone number and ID card information. On average, a customer information is only a dozen yuan.
Ah Jie said that they used the method of "widely casting a net" to contact the people on the list one by one. People like Wang Ming who are in urgent need of capital turnover are likely to become fish in the net.
Unlike Wang Ming, who has never contacted online loans, Zhao Qi, who works in Guangdong, is a regular online loan customer. All his lending records can be found on an electronic debit note platform. Such people are usually regarded as "key customers" by online loan companies.
Zhao Qi runs a small shop and often needs capital turnover. In March 2018, he saw the advantages of online loan companies in simple review and fast lending, and began to contact them frequently. I downloaded all the micro loan APP I could find and borrowed a little money every time I needed it. He said that when it comes to money, he never wanted to ask his relatives and friends for help. "I just love face. Those who can be controlled by routine loans are those who are afraid of losing face."
In order to maintain good credit reporting, he will repay on time every time, and never overdue. However, in the middle of 2018, due to frequent borrowing, his credit information was "crossed". He could no longer borrow money from formal loan companies, and bank loans could not pass the review. "Although they have income certificates and business licenses, they think you can borrow even one or two thousand yuan at ordinary times. Is there a problem with your repayment ability?"
"Everyone thinks that those who borrow money from routine loans must be people with bad habits. But in fact, their original intention may be to need thousands of yuan to turn over capital," said Liu Shenghui, a police officer of the Third Criminal Police Squadron of Qiaoxi Branch of Xingtai Public Security Bureau.
At first, Zhang Hong only borrowed 10000 yuan from the routine loan gang in order to repay thousands of yuan of credit card arrears. He never thought that his debt would roll over to more than four million only a few months later.
After adding friends with the suspect, the other party sent Wang Ming a QR code and asked him to scan the code and fill in information on his mobile phone. The information to be uploaded is very detailed, including scanning the ID card and vehicle driving license, informing the other party of their work unit, home address, QQ location and uploading life photos, authorizing the other party to view the mobile phone address book, Taobao and Alipay accounts for face recognition authentication. Finally, he will cooperate with the online loan company to conduct video verification to prove that the borrower is himself.
"Seeing that so many materials are needed, I still think it's strange that I can understand the need for ID card number and home address, and I don't know what to do with Taobao account number and life photos." Wang Ming speculated that the submission of these materials was probably to avoid not paying back the borrowed money. Without asking too much, he improved the materials step by step under the guidance of the suspect.
A relative of a borrower received a collection message because he could not pay back the money. Photograph provided by respondents
"The purpose of Taobao account is to verify the accuracy of the address. At least six times a year, the transaction records must be mailed to the address." During the trial, the auditor Ah Jie told the police handling the case that the life photos were prepared for debt collection. Once the borrower fails to pay back the money, they will send photos with insulting pictures or words to the borrower's relatives and friends.
More than two hours later, Wang Ming finally submitted all the materials. However, the auditor of the online loan company told him that with his qualification, the first loan could only be 3000 yuan at most. After deducting 30% of the "haircut interest", the real one was 2100 yuan, and the full repayment of 3000 yuan was seven days later.
The "haircut interest" means that when the loan company makes a loan, it first deducts a part of the money from the principal, and the borrower needs to repay this part of the money that has not been handed over at the time of repayment. Auditor A Jie said that this is the unspoken rule of the small loan industry. Generally speaking, 30% of the principal is charged for beheading interest.
"With such a small amount of money, we have to deduct so much interest. Don't borrow it." Wang Ming lost interest for a moment. He told the auditor that he needed four or five thousand yuan, which did not work at all. But the auditor advised him that he had wasted two hours anyway, so it would be better to make a loan once. According to the company's regulations, old customers who have borrowed money can enjoy the preferential policies of increasing the amount and reducing the interest.
Wang Ming thought it was reasonable and wanted to increase the amount and cut the interest rate. He didn't calculate how much the 30% beheading interest rate per week would amount to the adult interest rate. He only thought about 900 yuan. It would not be difficult to repay in seven days.
In fact, the annual interest rate of Wang Ming's loan has reached 3085.71%. According to the Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Private Lending Cases in 2015, if the annual interest rate agreed by the lenders and borrowers does not exceed 24%, the court will support the case during the litigation, and the agreed annual interest rate exceeding 36% is invalid.
"For different victims, the average annual interest rate of the gang's loans has reached 1500%, some higher, belonging to usury." On May 14, Liang Chao, a police officer handling the case, said. But they are quick to lend money, and many borrowers only need a few hours or even less from submitting materials to getting loans. For those who need money urgently, this is very attractive.
The 30% haircut offered by the online loan company to Wang Ming is not the highest. When Zhang Hong borrowed money from the suspect for the first time, the other party charged 50% of the beheaded interest.
At that time, he got a loan of 10000 yuan, but gave the lender "Dragon Shark" an IOU of 20000 yuan. "Dragon Shark" said that the 10000 yuan deducted was interest. If Zhang Hongneng paid back 20000 yuan within five days, he could increase the quota and reduce the interest next time.
In order to win Zhang Hong's trust in the deal, "Dragon Shark" introduced him to an online loan company called "Fuyou Finance", which also gave Zhang Hong a loan line of 20000 yuan, with a haircut of 30%.
The routine of never paying off the money
Wang Ming admitted that one of the reasons for choosing online lending was that he was moved by the temptation to increase the quota and reduce the interest rate.
The auditor told him that as long as he borrowed money from his company several times and paid it back on time each time, he would be able to enjoy preferential policies for regular customers in the future, with a single loan amount of 100000 yuan or more and an interest rate of only 1% per month. "For example, if you borrow 100000 yuan, the monthly interest is only 1000 yuan, and you can also pay off the principal and interest in installments by several months or half a year." Wang Ming believes that this way is very cost-effective with less interest and less repayment pressure.
Since September 2018, when contacted with the online loan company, every time when communicating on WeChat, the treasurer in charge will tell Wang Ming that he can handle large amount and low interest. But when they do lend, they push it to the next time. Three or four times later, Wang Ming's debt has doubled or tripled from the initial one, and it is still not up. The financial staff refused to raise the amount and cut the interest rate on the ground that he could not repay on time.
Wang Ming said that sometimes, the treasurer would refuse to continue lending for no reason, citing the company's regulations, and instead recommend another online loan company for him. The new company refused to handle large and low interest loans for Wang Ming because he was a new customer.
In more than two months, Wang Ming has contacted more than a dozen financial staff of companies, but he has never received the so-called amount increase or interest rate cut. Once he was in a hurry and had to discuss with the treasurer. The other side suddenly softened down and said, "The money is in the hands of the boss. We are only part-time workers, and we don't have such great authority. We will help you win next time".
Wang Ming became suspicious. "Why do you all say the same thing? Do the bosses know each other?" The other said they didn't know. It was the boss's business. Later, when the whole gang was arrested, the police handling the case told Wang Ming that more than a dozen treasurers were actually from the same company, and some were even played by the same person.
A month and a half later, Wang Ming finally realized that the increase of the amount and the reduction of the interest rate were just the pretext for the online loan company to continue to borrow money, which was impossible to fulfill. But at this time, his total debt has changed from the original 3000 yuan to more than 80000 yuan.
After seeing the problem, Wang Ming hopes to get away as soon as possible. He sold his car and gold and paid back more than 60000 yuan, leaving only 20000 yuan in arrears. At this time, the treasurer recommended him a new finance that could lend 30000 yuan, deduct 30% of the beheading interest, and get 21000 yuan.
Wang Ming paid back the 20000 yuan he owed before, but his debt increased by another 10000 yuan. According to the rate of repayment every 5-7 days, in less than a month, 30000 yuan rolled back to more than 100000 yuan. "I know it's a trap, but I can't borrow it," Wang Ming said.
In this regard, Liang Chao, a police officer handling the case, said that "routine loan" was named after "routine loan". Compared with ordinary usury, suspects have more links to cheat. In the name of increasing the loan limit, they will entice the borrower to continue lending to support the loan. "In fact, if the borrower pays back the money for the first time and stops borrowing, the lending company will have no choice. As long as the borrower continues to lend, the interest will roll, and soon the small loan will become a huge debt."
On March 26, Xingtai police broke two trans provincial "routine loan" gangs and seized computers, mobile phones, group pagers and other equipment. Photograph provided by respondents
Another routine is called "extension". The "extension" was originally a way for the loan company to deal with the borrower's failure to pay back the money. An extra interest payment could extend the period by one time. However, loan companies sometimes deliberately impede the borrower's repayment or force the borrower not to repay on time. In this way, the online loan company not only earns a high extension fee, but also keeps catching up with the borrower.
On several occasions, Wang Ming raised enough money to repay the loan, but the auditor told him that he could not repay the loan first, make several extensions, and then increase the amount when he borrowed money next time. If there is no extension, the treasurer will not give the loan next time. Then Wang Ming can only find his own way to repay the money.
"When he asked me to extend the loan period, I was in a state of supporting the loan with a loan." Wang Ming said that he would not dare not do it. For a borrower who supports the loan with a loan, it is almost impossible to raise money to repay by himself.
Zhang Hong also had the experience of "being extended". In September 2018, he borrowed a sum of money and intended to settle the debt, but the auditor said that there was something wrong with the repayment account and it could only be used the next day, "you can do a one-day extension". Zhang Hong's principal in arrears at that time was 150000 yuan, and the extension fee was 10000 yuan a day. Because he was an old customer, the auditor gave him a 10% discount. Another time, the auditor said that the boss had gone abroad, and Zhang Hong had a three-day extension.
In the half year of routine loan, Zhang Hong paid more than 800000 yuan for the extension fee alone. "Every time they raise some money, they change the way to make an exhibition. When the exhibition is finished, they will spend almost all the money and can't pay back." Zhang Hong told the police.
Because the loan cycle was only a few days, Zhang Hong's first two arrears were due before he could raise enough money. In order to pay back the money borrowed from the credit card, he borrowed some money from the credit card. In addition, he borrowed money from his friends and raised 40000 yuan to pay back the money. He lost 16000 yuan of interest after removing the principal he used.
Zhang Hong, who could have stopped at this point, was thinking about a large loan of more than 100000 yuan. He wanted to borrow a large sum of money to ease the economic pressure during that period. So on the day of the first repayment, he wrote another IOU to Dragon Shark and loaned 50000 yuan.
Apart from 50% of the beheading interest, 50000 yuan has become 25000 yuan in Zhang Hong's hands. Dragon Shark introduced him to the third online loan company. After deducting 30% haircut interest, Zhang Hong borrowed 21000 yuan from the third company and 14000 yuan from the "Rich Finance" he had borrowed before. In only five days, his debt changed from more than 40000 yuan to 100000 yuan.
For borrowers like Zhang Hong, after several rounds of loans, online loan companies no longer have to pay. For example, Zhang Hong borrowed 70000 yuan last time, and repaid the loan in 5 days as agreed. But when it was due, he could not lend money, so he had to borrow new money to repay the old. At this time, the treasurer will take the initiative to propose that "it is too troublesome to move money around". "He said he would give you a credit line of 100000 yuan this time, and you can just write an IOU directly." After writing an IOU of 100000 yuan, Zhang Hong didn't have much money in his hand, but his debt to the online loan company suddenly increased by 30000 yuan.
During this period, several online loan companies offered loans to Zhang Hong, ranging from several thousand yuan to tens of thousands of yuan. Some repayment periods are 7 days, some are 5 days, and the shortest is only one or two days.
Because of the high haircut interest, the more principal borrowed, the more interest lost. On September 10, 2018, Zhang Hong made an IOU of 185000 yuan to four lending companies, but only 120000 yuan was actually received. Ten days later, Zhang Hong had already made more than 20 IOUs, with a total amount of more than 800000 yuan, while the actual amount was less than 500000 yuan.
In order to pay back the money, Zhang Hong sold his car and house. He also secretly took out the more than 2 million wealth management products that his elders had in the bank to repay the loan. By March 2019, he had already paid more than 4 million yuan to a dozen online loan companies, but there was still nearly 600000 yuan in arrears.
Because of the lack of money, a friend or relative of a borrower received a photo of the borrower after PS. Photograph provided by respondents
Zhao Qi's debt also accumulated little by little. In half a year, his debt has changed from the initial 5000 yuan to nearly 600000 yuan.
In fact, Zhao Qi had already failed to pay when he owed more than 300000 yuan. He had to confess to his family, who persuaded him to call the police. Zhao Qi specifically consulted a lawyer, who said that he would pay off the principal even if the police intervened. "But there are too many financial staff involved in the process. How to calculate the principal and how many there are has long been unclear." Zhao Qi thought for a while, but gave up the alarm.
Since the hundreds of thousands of dollars in arrears are not enough, on November 17, 2018, Zhang Hong received a call from the financial staff of two online loan companies for debt collection. They ran to Zhang Hong's unit and said that if he didn't pay back the money, he would have to go to the credit bureau; He also posted a photo of Zhang Hong and sent it to the people in his mobile phone address book. It was a picture of him with his ID card in his hand, accompanied by the words: My name is Zhang Hong. I cheated everywhere and didn't pay back the money. I had no face to face your relatives and friends. Friends I know raised money in a crowd. One yuan and two yuan are not too small. The whole family will work hard for you in the afterlife.
Later, the corridor and door of Zhang Hong's family were painted with red paint words of "pay back" by the collector. He was too frightened to go home. When he went out, he had to wear a long brimmed hat and big black glasses. When he walked on the street, he always felt that someone was watching him.
Wang Ming also experienced violent collection. Once, because he failed to pay back the money on time, the online loan company called his parents' home: "Your son owes millions. Don't be too happy not to pay back the money!" The parents were frightened and asked him what happened. He pretended to be calm on the phone and patted the table, accusing the rampant telecommunications fraud: "Liar! Don't believe it, let them come to me directly if they have something to do!"
After putting down the phone, Wang Ming broke into a cold sweat. "It's over. My family knows."
More than 1500 victims, 200 million yuan involved in the case
On November 23, 2018, desperate Zhang Hong reported to Qiaoxi Branch of Xingtai Public Security Bureau in Hebei Province. According to the online electronic IOUs, from September 2018 to March 2019, the online loan company made 78 loans to Zhang Hong, with a cumulative amount of more than 1.93 million yuan. However, the transaction record shows that after Zhang Hong has repaid more than 4.07 million yuan during the same period, there are still 6 arrears, the maximum is 200000 yuan and the minimum is 50000 yuan, totaling 599000 yuan.
After Zhang Hong reported the case, Xingtai police quickly collected clues. By accessing WeChat and telephone information, they found that Zhang Hong was loaned by two online loan companies: Kueida online loan company in Nanjing, Jiangsu, with 9 members; Zhejiang Ruian's Kapone Company has 7 members.
According to Liang Chao, a police officer who handled the case, the two companies have similar operating modes, both of which take 7 days and 14 days as the term of loan to raise the interest rate. "This model has been exposed by the 315 party this year, and is known as the 714 anti-aircraft gun routine loan."
Liang Chao explained that routine lending is not a crime, nor a legal term, but a general term for a crime. The suspected crimes include fraud, extortion, illegal detention, provocation, and intentional injury. "This form of crime first appeared in 2016, but because the means are not typical, they often use harassing phone calls, verbal threats and other means to collect debts. There is no beating, killing, or illegal detention involved. Therefore, before the beginning of the nationwide crackdown on crime in 2018, many victims reported cases due to similar circumstances, but they could not accept them," Liang Chao said.
Until April this year, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the Opinions on Several Issues Concerning the Handling of Criminal Cases Involving "Soft Violence", in which the illegal and criminal means and conviction standards of "soft violence" were clearly stipulated, and the handling of routine loan cases also became law based.
On March 26, Xingtai police captured the online loan company gang at Nanjing Airport. Photograph provided by respondents
On March 26, 2019, Xingtai police seized the network of the gang involved, captured 9 people in Nanjing and 7 people in Zhejiang, and escorted them back to Xingtai. In addition to two female suspects who have been released on bail, 14 other suspects have been detained for criminal offences.
Xingtai police found that more than 1500 victims were involved in the case, which was distributed in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and cities across the country. At present, the 200 million yuan involved in the case is being traced at the same time.
(At the request of the interviewee, Zhang Hong, Wang Ming and Zhao Qi are pseudonyms)
Beijing News reporter Wang Chong reports from Xingtai, Hebei Province
Editor Hua Xuan Proofread Jia Ning