FBI Dismantles $15 Billion Cambodia-Based Crypto Fraud Network in Historic Bitcoin Seizure

In an unprecedented law enforcement action, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has seized more than $15 billion worth of Bitcoin linked to a massive “pig butchering” scam network operating out of Cambodia. The operation marks the largest asset forfeiture in American history, surpassing any previous crypto or traditional financial seizure.

According to FBI Director Kash Patel, the takedown targeted a sprawling criminal enterprise accused of exploiting victims worldwide through elaborate online investment schemes. The network, allegedly overseen by 37-year-old Chinese national Chen Zhi, used forced labor, coercion, and psychological manipulation to fuel its fraud operations. Zhi remains a fugitive.

Patel described the event as one of the most significant victories in the global fight against financial cybercrime. “One of the biggest financial fraud takedowns ever — a global criminal network built on forced labor, money laundering, and deception,” Patel wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed that federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against Zhi and several associates under the Prince Group, the conglomerate allegedly at the center of the operation. The charges include conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, each carrying a potential prison sentence of up to 40 years.

According to court filings, the Prince Group ran a network of compounds in Cambodia where workers were held against their will and forced to carry out digital scams targeting unsuspecting investors. Victims were lured into what appeared to be legitimate cryptocurrency investment opportunities, gradually convinced to transfer increasingly large sums before the schemes collapsed — a method known as “pig butchering,” derived from the Chinese termsha zhu pan, meaning “to fatten the pig before slaughter.”

U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella emphasized the human cost behind the operation. “Prince Group’s investment scams have caused billions of dollars in losses and untold misery to victims around the world, including here in New York, on the backs of individuals who have been trafficked and forced to work against their will,” he said in a statement.

The Department of Justice is now pursuing broader efforts to dismantle the Prince Group’s transnational network, which operates across 30 countries. Prosecutors are working with international law enforcement partners to trace assets, identify accomplices, and hold the organization’s leadership accountable.

Analysts say the case signals a turning point in global anti-fraud enforcement. The combination of cryptocurrency, human trafficking, and international organized crime has long challenged regulators, but the sheer scale of the seizure demonstrates growing U.S. capacity to track and recover illicit digital assets.

The FBI’s success also underscores the evolving sophistication of crypto-related crime and the government’s increasing resolve to confront it. As one of the largest crackdowns in history, the $15 billion seizure stands as a warning to networks exploiting both technology and human vulnerability for profit.