Cambodia has extradited to China a billionaire businessman accused of masterminding a vast cryptocurrency scam in which trafficked workers were lured to forced labour camps to defraud victims globally.
Chen Zhi was among three Chinese nationals arrested on 6 January after a joint investigation into transnational crime lasting several months, Cambodia said.
The US charged the 37-year-old last October with running internet scams from Cambodia that it said had stolen billions in cryptocurrency. The UK also sanctioned his global business empire, Prince Group.
Cambodian authorities have also suspended the operations of Prince Bank, a subsidiary of Prince Group, which has been placed under liquidation. Customers can still withdraw money and repay loans, the National Bank of Cambodia said on Thursday.
Last year, US authorities seized about $15bn worth of bitcoin that allegedly belonged to Chen, in what FBI Director Kash Patel described as 'one of the largest financial fraud takedowns in history'.
The BBC contacted Prince Group for comment at the time. In the past, the Cambodia-based group has denied any involvement in scams. Its website says its businesses include property development and financial and consumer services.
Since Chen Zhi was indicted by the US on fraud and money-laundering charges in October, his whereabouts have been unclear. However, on Wednesday, the Cambodian authorities stated that they had 'arrested three Chinese nationals namely Chen Zhi, Xu Ji Liang, and Shao Ji Hui and extradited [them] to the People's Republic of China'. The interior ministry statement did not specify where Chen Zhi had been detained.
His Cambodian nationality had been revoked by royal decree last month, it added. Chen had given up his Chinese nationality to become a Cambodian citizen in 2014.
The UN estimates that hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked to South East Asia, with many lured by the promise of legitimate jobs and then forced to run online scams.
People are held against their will in the scam farms and made to defraud strangers online under the threat of punishment or torture, with many of those trapped being Chinese targets.
Chinese authorities have also been quietly investigating the Prince Group since at least 2020, accusing it of running online fraud schemes in multiple court cases.
Cambodia's ruling elite have been close to Chen Zhi for years. The government has offered little comment since the US and UK sanctioned Prince Group, apart from urging authorities to ensure sufficient evidence for their allegations.
By some estimates, scam businesses may account for around half of the entire Cambodian economy, highlighting the scale of operations that Chen Zhi is accused of running.
