Table of Contents
A Chinese programmer named Hu Lezhi is making waves in the crypto world after transferring nearly 2,000 ETH (approximately $5 million) to burn wallets and donation addresses, leaving behind a series of alarming on-chain messages about mind control, surveillance, and his own perceived loss of autonomy.
On-chain data shows that Hu sent 500 ETH to a burn wallet—effectively destroying the funds, accompanied by a chilling message:
“I am Hu Lezhi, an ordinary programmer and entrepreneur. Since the beginning of 2022, I have realized that I have been under surveillance and control by an evil organization from birth. When I became aware of the controllers’ existence, they also became aware of my awareness of them. Over the past two years, this realization has been terrifying for me. Now that I have lost everything around me, I have decided to leave this world. I hope that the world without me will be better.”
Further transactions included 591 ETH, 50 ETH and 35 ETH sent to the WikiLeaks donation address and another 700 ETH across three transactions to an entity linked to ndao.eth, with similarly cryptic and conspiratorial messages attached.
Claims of Mind Control and Digital Slavery
Hu’s messages suggest he believes he has been monitored and manipulated by a shadowy organization his entire life. He also made disturbing claims about brain-computer interfaces, alleging that:
“Brain chips have already been deployed on a large scale in military bases. All citizens are controlled by wireless and nanotechnology brain chips.”
Other messages reference a dystopian world where humans and animals alike are subjected to a form of digital enslavement, warning of a future in which individuals lose all sense of desire and become “complete slaves to the digital machine.”
Who Is Hu Lezhi?
Little is known about Hu’s background beyond his self-identification as a programmer and entrepreneur. His name does not appear in any major tech or crypto circles, and his transactions mark the first known public activity linked to him. The sheer scale of his donations suggests significant prior wealth, though its source remains unclear.
X users suspect Hu is an "ex-#1 binance leaderboard trader" and "Chinese millionaire" who "kinda crazy around 2022."
i have a suspicion this user is @nothingness321 (deleted handle), ex-#1 binance leaderboard trader. chinese millionaire. he went kinda crazy around 2022 (https://t.co/G4VkFsiGt7 etc) and he burned something like 1k eth in one tx. https://t.co/0iv70uJSo7
— syq (@syq) February 17, 2025
His activity bears some resemblance to previous cases of individuals making large on-chain statements, either as protests, acts of despair, or enigmatic performance art. However, the consistency and urgency of Hu’s messages point to a deeper personal crisis rather than a publicity stunt.
Crypto as a Medium for Extreme Speech
This incident underscores how public blockchains can serve as platforms for individuals to share messages that would otherwise be ignored or censored. Unlike traditional social media, which can moderate and remove content, blockchain transactions are permanent and immutable, preserving Hu’s statements indefinitely.
At the same time, it raises questions about how crypto wealth can be used in extreme acts, whether as final statements, protests, or distress signals. The Ethereum community has witnessed numerous cases of large sums being burned or donated for ideological reasons, but Hu’s case stands out for its deeply personal and unsettling nature.
What Happens Next?
It is unclear whether Hu is still alive or if this was his final act before taking irreversible action. If additional transactions or messages emerge, they may offer more insight into his motivations – or confirm the worst.
For now, his ETH has been permanently removed from circulation or directed toward causes he deemed important. His messages, etched forever into the blockchain, leave behind a haunting testament to a man who felt trapped in a world he could no longer endure.
