U.S. and UK Blacklist Pig-Butchering Scammers, Seize $15 Billion in Bitcoin

U.S. and UK authorities seized roughly $15 billion in Bitcoin and multiple London properties allegedly linked to a sprawling online fraud scheme based in Cambodia.

The action, described by the U.S. Department of Justice as the largest forfeiture in its history, targets a network accused of running industrial-scale “pig butchering” schemes that lure victims into bogus crypto investments and romance scams, The Guardian reported.

Authorities also imposed travel bans and sanctions on six individuals, including two businessmen born in China, in a joint effort to disrupt what they called transnational organized crime.

British measures included freezing assets believed to belong to the alleged ringleaders, among them a £12-million mansion on Avenue Road, a £95-million office block on Fenchurch Street, and several central London flats. The UK Foreign Office coordinated with the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control to trace holdings across multiple jurisdictions.

Rights groups and investigators say Cambodia has emerged as a hub for scam compounds where workers, often trafficked under false job offers, are forced to carry out cyber-fraud scams under threat of violence, The Guardian said. Survivors have reported beatings and electrocution in facilities ringed by high walls and barbed wire, the news outlet reported.

Among those blacklisted by officials is Chen Zhi, chair of Cambodia’s Prince Group, who has cultivated significant influence in Phnom Penh and is reported to hold citizenship in Cyprus and Vanuatu. U.S. filings say proceeds were used to acquire luxury assets including watches, yachts, jets, high-end property, and rare art, allegedly including a Picasso purchased via a New York auction house, the news agency said.

Other sanctions designees include the Prince Group, which owns casinos, property developments, and a commercial bank; Jin Bei Group, which owns a hotel-casino complex in Sihanoukville, Cambodia; Golden Fortune Resorts World, the alleged operator of a scam compound near Phnom Penh; and Byex Exchange, a cryptocurrency platform.

“The masterminds behind these horrific scam centers are ruining the lives of vulnerable people and buying up London homes to store their money,” said UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.