In brief
Cambodia has extradited billionaire Chen Zhi to China, who is accused of masterminding a significant cryptocurrency scam involving trafficked workers forced into fraud schemes. Arrested during a multi-month investigation, Chen controlled a company linked to alleged scams worth billions. The situation reveals serious concerns regarding human trafficking and the scale of online fraud operations in Southeast Asia.
Cambodia says it has extradited to China a billionaire businessman accused of masterminding a vast cryptocurrency scam in which trafficked workers were lured to forced labour camps to defraud victims globally.
Chen Zhi was among three Chinese nationals arrested on 6 January after a joint investigation into transnational crime lasting several months, Cambodia said.
The US charged the 37-year-old last October with running internet scams from Cambodia that it said had stolen billions in cryptocurrency. The UK also sanctioned his global business empire, Prince Group.
Cambodian authorities have also suspended the operations of Prince Bank, a subsidiary of Prince Group.
The bank has been placed under liquidation and banned from offering new banking services - though customers can still withdraw money and repay loans, the National Bank of Cambodia said on Thursday.
Last year, US authorities seized about $15bn (£11bn) worth of bitcoin that alleged belonged to Chen, in what FBI Director Kash Patel described as one of the largest financial fraud takedowns in history.
The BBC contacted Prince Group for comment at the time. In the past, the Cambodia-based group has denied any involvement in scams. Its website says its businesses include property development, and financial and consumer services.
Since Chen Zhi was indicted by the US on fraud and money-laundering charges in October, his whereabouts have been unclear.
But on Wednesday, the Cambodian authorities said they had arrested three Chinese nationals namely Chen Zhi, Xu Ji Liang, and Shao Ji Hui and extradited [them] to the People's Republic of China. The interior ministry statement did not say where Chen Zhi had been detained.
His Cambodian nationality had been revoked by royal decree last month, it added. The enigmatic tycoon had given up his Chinese nationality to become a Cambodian citizen in 2014.
The UN estimates that hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked to South East Asia, many of them to Cambodia, lured by the promise of legitimate jobs and then forced to run online scams.
Chinese authorities have also been quietly investigating the Prince Group since at least 2020. The company is accused of running online fraud schemes in a number of court cases.
Cambodia's ruling elite have been close to Chen Zhi for years, and by some estimates, scam businesses may account for around half of the entire Cambodian economy.
