As Reported in the New York Post, United States prosecutors have charged Chen Zhi, the 38-year-old chairman of Cambodia’s Prince Holding Group, in one of the largest cryptocurrency scams in history. The US government also announced the seizure of more than US$14 billion worth of Bitcoin, alleging that Chen masterminded a vast online investment fraud ring fuelled by forced labour, violence, and money laundering.
In the article, it was revealed that in an indictment unsealed in Brooklyn federal court, Chen was accused of wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors said his organisation built an empire of online “pig-butchering scams” — schemes in which victims are lured into fake cryptocurrency investments through emotional manipulation — generating up to US$30 million a day at its peak.
Violence, Forced Labour and a Global Scam Network
According to the article, US authorities discovered that Prince Holding Group operated at least 10 compounds in Cambodia, where trafficked workers were held against their will, forced to create fake online personas, and instructed to target thousands of victims worldwide. Some compounds, prosecutors said, were connected to Prince’s Jinbei Casino Hotel and another called Golden Fortune.
Workers who attempted to escape were allegedly beaten, confined behind barbed wire fences, or denied food. The US Treasury Department described conditions as “forced labour camps,” and released photographs showing bound workers and victims with severe injuries.
It was mentioned in the article that Chen personally approved at least one beating, reportedly warning subordinates not to kill the man involved. Witnesses said escapees from Golden Fortune were “beaten until they are barely alive.”
The indictment detailed how victims were defrauded of hundreds of thousands of dollars each, with proceeds funnelled into luxury assets — including yachts, private jets, rare art pieces, vacation homes, and even a Picasso painting.
Sanctions and International Fallout
The US Treasury Department and British authorities simultaneously imposed sanctions on Prince Holding Group, declaring it a transnational criminal organisation. Chinese authorities have also been investigating the company since 2020 for related cyber scams and money laundering.
Jacob Daniel Sims, a transnational crime expert at Harvard University’s Asia Center, said the case “fundamentally changes the risk calculus” for global banks and investors. “It sends a message that touching Cambodian elite money now comes with enormous risk,” he added.
Chen, who also goes by the name Vincent Chen, remains at large. If convicted, he faces up to 40 years in prison. The US may seek to liquidate the seized 127,271 Bitcoins — currently valued at around US$14 billion — to compensate victims.
Ties to Cambodia’s Political Elite
Chen is widely known in Cambodia for his connections to the country’s leadership. He has served as an adviser to Prime Minister Hun Manet and former Prime Minister Hun Sen, and was honoured with the elite title of “neak oknha”, akin to an English lordship.
Analysts say his indictment reflects growing US pressure on Southeast Asian regimes accused of enabling cyberfraud and human trafficking. Last year, the US and UK sanctioned Ly Yong Phat, another powerful Cambodian tycoon, over allegations of forced labour and online scams.
A Regional Scourge
The UN estimates that as of 2023, more than 100,000 people in Cambodia were being forced to conduct online scams, with tens of thousands more in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and the Philippines.
“While these actions won’t end the scam economy overnight,” Sims said, “they shrink its oxygen supply and send a rare message to regimes like Cambodia’s — that elite crime as a ruling strategy is a double-edged sword.”
