The United States has imposed 146 sanctions on Cambodian conglomerate Prince Group and demanded the confiscation of $15 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) from its “secret” criminal network.
The Treasury announced that the enforcement action, developed in conjunction with the UK, aims to stop fraud rings targeting victims around the world.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has sanctioned 146 targets, including Chen Zhi, the alleged leader of Prince Group companies, and numerous shell companies and business associates.
The US has also asked the court to release 127,271 BTC currently under government control. claims this “staggering amount” Fabricated Chen Zhi’s laundered profits.
Interestingly, cryptocurrency detective ZachXBT points out that the wallet address listed in the forfeiture request was flagged as having compromised private keys in the “Milk Sad” report on cryptocurrency wallet vulnerabilities.
He even goes so far as to suggest that the U.S. government, or someone acting on behalf of the U.S. government, was able to hack into cryptocurrency wallets and take control of BTC.
Prince Group allegedly took bribes from raids
Chen Zhi allegedly ran a cryptocurrency fraud business by building and operating at least 10 forced labor camps in Cambodia.
These compounds hold trafficked victims hostage and force them to scam virtual currency online. It is prevalent in Southeast Asia such as Cambodia and Myanmar.
Members of the Prince group reportedly gifted multi-million dollar yachts to politicians to protect themselves from attacks and were tipped off by enforcement authorities.
In one case, an official from China’s Ministry of Public Security allegedly offered to help Prince Group recruit employees.off hook”
Read more: Starlink is a lifeline for Myanmar fraud complex, report
A Chinese law enforcement official was allegedly instructed to blackmail local businesses while promoting Prince Group as a safeguard. In these same transactions, Prince Group employees claim that the fraud complex raids never actually affected “us.”
Fraudsters are also using Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites to circumvent attempts to disrupt internet connectivity, which have been seen being rapidly built across fraud centers.
Prince Group allegedly laundered money through BTC mining
The profits were then allegedly laundered through shell companies, mirror sites, and “laundering houses” that turned illegally obtained BTC and USDT into legal tender.
Large-scale cryptocurrency mining operations such as Warp Data and Lubian were also used to launder profits. Rivian at one time operated the “sixth largest BTC mining operation in the world.”
As part of today’s sanctions, the US has also cut off the ‘Fuione Group’ from the US financial system. The group claims it helped launder illegal proceeds. Total amount to reach $4 billion from 2021 to 2024.
The United States estimates that its citizens have lost $16.6 billion to these fraudulent companies over the past few years.
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