Crypto Fraud Tycoon Detained: Prince Group Founder Deported from Cambodia to China

Cambodia has arrested Prince Group founder Chen Zhi and transferred him to China at Beijing’s request, its information ministry said on Wednesday, after a joint Cambodia–China investigation. 

Authorities did not say whether Chen will be charged in China, and the Cambodia China Times reported he was detained earlier this week before being deported. The removal comes months after US prosecutors accused Chen of running a major crypto-fraud network operating out of scam compounds in Cambodia. 

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Roughly US$15 billion in Bitcoin Seized

According to The New York Times, US authorities allege the sites relied on forced labour and carried out “pig-butchering” schemes, in which victims are drawn into fake investment or romance pitches before being pressured into sending cryptocurrency.

Notably, in October, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed what it described as its largest forfeiture action, seeking to seize roughly US$15 billion (AU$22.9 billion) in Bitcoin (BTC) allegedly linked to the operation, along with hundreds of millions of dollars in property and other assets. 

US authorities say the BTC targeted in the case represents proceeds of fraud and money laundering tied to Chen and entities connected to Prince Group.

Cambodian officials also said Chen’s citizenship was revoked late last year. Cambodia has no extradition treaty with the United States, which means his transfer to China bypassed any direct handover to U.S. custody.

The case has also fed into broader disputes over seized Bitcoin. In November, China’s National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center accused the US government of orchestrating a separate 2020 theft of more than 120,000 bitcoin, valued at about US$11 billion (AU$16.8 billion), from a Chinese mining pool, according to a Bloomberg report.

Prince Group has previously denied involvement in scams and described allegations against it as false.

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