WASHINGTON, USA – The FBI announced on Wednesday that it had seized about $15 billion in cryptocurrency tied to Chen Zhi, a Cambodian businessman accused of running an extensive fraud network, in a coordinated international operation targeting organised online scams, cybercrime and human trafficking.
Global sweep began in Washington
The operation began in Washington, where FBI Director Kash Patel said the assets were linked to Chen Zhi, head of the Prince Holding Group and an associate of former Cambodian strongman Hun Sen and his son, Prime Minister Hun Manet. US officials described the seizures as part of a broad, multinational effort against organised fraud and related crimes.
The FBI and other American agencies said the business empire was a façade masking at least ten scam facilities. Officials allege the group used casinos, cryptocurrency exchanges and offshore accounts to move and launder proceeds from the operations.
London freezes properties tied to network
Simultaneously, British authorities moved to freeze luxury London properties connected with the same network. The National Crime Agency identified a number of high-value residences held by shell companies linked to Cambodian and Chinese nationals reportedly in Chen’s circle.
UK action followed information developed with US investigators and was intended to disrupt alleged money-laundering channels and prevent further dissipation of assets.
Seoul sends high-level team amid outcry over abducted nationals
South Korea deployed an unprecedented special response team to Phnom Penh after reports that hundreds of Korean nationals had been lured to Cambodia with false job offers and forced to work in scam factories. The delegation, led by Vice-Foreign Minister Kim Ji-na, included senior representatives from police, intelligence and foreign affairs ministries. Its stated mission was to locate missing citizens, secure justice for victims and repatriate detainees.
South Korean authorities recorded more than 330 such cases between January and August 2025, a sharp rise from 17 reported in 2022 and 220 in 2024. The issue has become a national political priority: President Lee Jae-myung ordered a full government mobilisation on October 11 and the foreign ministry issued a travel warning advising citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Cambodia.
Abductions and brutality fuelled diplomatic urgency
A case that galvanised public outrage in Seoul involved 22-year-old student Park, who was reported missing after travelling to Cambodia to attend what he believed was a job fair. His body was found in Kampot province in August. According to South Korean investigators, Park’s captors demanded a ransom of 50 million won and he died after sustained torture; an autopsy listed acute heart failure caused by prolonged abuse.
Cambodian police later arrested three Chinese nationals and rescued 14 Korean victims from the same facility. Human rights investigators say the Kampot site formed part of a wider network of more than 20 Chinese criminal gangs that together controlled at least 20,000 workers in Cambodia.
Alleged finances and scope of the scam industry
US prosecutors contend Chen’s conglomerate moved billions through casinos, crypto platforms and offshore accounts in Hong Kong and Dubai and used those channels to fund and hide scam operations disguised as call centres, casinos and tech parks. Analysts estimate the wider scam industry tied to these networks could be worth more than 600 billion baht, several times larger than Cambodia’s official GDP.
According to US briefings, funds flowed through cryptocurrency exchanges, shell companies and investments in luxury real estate in London, Singapore and Dubai.
Regional political reverberations and allegations involving Thailand
The crackdown sent shockwaves through the region. In Bangkok, opposition lawmaker Rangsiman Rome recently accused a Bangkok-based financier named Benjamin Smith of links to the Cambodian scam industry; US congressional documents cited Smith in connection with Southeast Asian online fraud networks. Allegations have also been made that Smith had personal ties to Thai officials, though those remain contested and have not resulted in charges.
As Washington, London and Seoul stepped up pressure, Cambodian authorities said they were cooperating with investigations. On October 13, Cambodian prosecutors charged three Chinese suspects in connection with the murder of the student Park.
What comes next
US officials characterised the action as part of a sustained international campaign to dismantle what they called ‘one of the most sophisticated transnational criminal networks in the world.’ The coordinated seizures and asset freezes are intended to disrupt the financial infrastructure of the scam operations and to secure the release and return of victims.
The revelations have renewed calls for closer regional cooperation to tackle money laundering, trafficking and online fraud. Observers say the case will test how far neighbouring capitals, including Bangkok, will go to support cross-border investigations and tighten financial transparency to prevent the re-emergence of such networks.