Thai police seize $2.5 million USDT due to suspected fraud

The cooperation of Thais and Chinese police has led to the arrest of two people and the seizing of 2.5 million tether USDT stubcoin worth $2.5 million, investigators said.

A recent report by a local English news outlet found that Stubcoin Holdings was obtained through a massive fraud operation Cora English. The arrest took place on February 5th, with the two Chinese citizens reportedly resisting the arrest and attempting to delete data from their mobile phones.

The suspects, 29-year-old Ye Wanyou and 30-year-old Li Weijie, were arrested for a luxurious residence. So investigators also seized assets worth $44,550. Further investigations in cooperation with Chinese authorities have frozen USDT worth $2.5 million.

A Tether spokesman said Decryption “With tethers, all actions are online, all transactions are traceable, all assets can be seized, and all criminals can be caught.”

A representative of the company further emphasized that the fact that the perpetrator was caught and the USDT holdings were seized is “proof of criminal traceability and arrests and illegal use of USDT.”

Cooperation with Chinese law enforcement also led to evidence suggesting that the suspect was involved in human trafficking operations along the Thai border. Authorities also found a potential office for the business in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, revealing fraudulent product sales in Thailand.

Thai police police lieutenant general Siam Buonsm said the two men were charged with public fraud. Authorities are also opposed to bail, investigations are still underway, and the possibility of an accomplice has not yet been arrested.

This is not the first non-China fraud operation with the involvement of the Chinese citizens.

In mid-December 2024, the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crime Commission arrested nearly 800 people nationwide in connection with crypto romance fraud, with the Chinese making a strong presence in the operation.

Police said 148 Chinese people, 40 Filipinos, two Harzaltans, one Pakistani and one Indonesian. In February, Hong Kong police intercepted more than $3.37 million (HK 34 million) of fraudulent revenues as part of an elaborate operation to target victims using artificial intelligence.

Edited by Stacy Elliott.