(LibertySociety.com) – The Department of Justice just announced the largest financial seizure in its history, $15 billion in Bitcoin, taken from a Cambodian crime boss who built his fortune on the backs of human trafficking victims forced to scam Americans out of their life savings.
Story Highlights
- DOJ seizes record-breaking $15 billion in Bitcoin from Cambodian scam network leader Chen Zhi
- Crime syndicate used human trafficking and forced labor to operate global fraud schemes targeting Americans
- Prince Group operated scam compounds across 30+ countries while maintaining legitimate business fronts
- Chen Zhi remains at large as FBI continues international manhunt for dual UK/Cambodian citizen
Unprecedented Seizure Exposes Global Criminal Empire
The Trump administration’s Department of Justice delivered a crushing blow to international cybercrime networks this month, seizing approximately 127,271 Bitcoin valued at $15 billion from Chen Zhi, the alleged mastermind behind one of the world’s largest human trafficking and cryptocurrency fraud operations. Attorney General Pamela Bondi called the action “one of the most significant strikes ever against the global scourge of human trafficking and cyber-enabled financial fraud.” The seizure represents the largest financial asset recovery in DOJ history, demonstrating the new administration’s commitment to aggressive law enforcement against transnational crime.
Modern Slavery Fueled Cryptocurrency Fraud Machine
Chen Zhi’s Prince Group operated dozens of scam compounds throughout Cambodia, using trafficked individuals as forced labor to perpetrate sophisticated “pig butchering” schemes against victims worldwide. These operations involved long-term confidence scams where workers, operating under threat of violence, would build romantic or investment relationships with targets before convincing them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms. The criminal network specifically targeted American citizens, with over 250 victims identified in New York alone. The use of human trafficking to enable financial crimes represents a disturbing evolution in transnational organized crime that demands the strongest possible response.
Sophisticated Money Laundering Network Spanning Three Decades
Since founding the Prince Group in 2015, Chen Zhi built a global business empire spanning more than 30 countries, using legitimate enterprises including online gambling, real estate, and cryptocurrency mining operations as cover for massive money laundering activities. The dual UK/Cambodian citizen, formerly a Chinese national, created an intricate web of shell companies and financial instruments to obscure the criminal origins of billions in stolen assets. Blockchain researchers flagged suspicious wallet activities as early as 2023, noting weak security protocols that ultimately enabled law enforcement to trace and seize the cryptocurrency holdings.
Justice Department Targets Cryptocurrency Crime Under New Leadership
The successful operation demonstrates the Trump administration’s enhanced focus on combating cryptocurrency-enabled crime and protecting American victims from international fraud schemes. Unlike previous administrations that often took a hands-off approach to emerging financial technologies, the DOJ’s aggressive action sends a clear message to international criminal networks that American law enforcement will pursue stolen assets wherever they may be hidden. The investigation continues as the FBI actively seeks Chen Zhi, who remains at large despite the international manhunt. Civil forfeiture proceedings are underway for the seized Bitcoin, though the DOJ has not yet clarified how victims might receive compensation from recovered assets.
Copyright 2025, LibertySociety.com .
