Published on: October 15, 2025, 04:25h.
Updated on: October 15, 2025, 04:25h.
- US and UK impose sanctions on Cambodian criminal syndicate.
- Authorities seize $15 billion in bitcoin and properties in London.
- Connections to trafficking and fraud linked to Prince Group and Jin Bei.
The governments of the US and UK have enacted sanctions against a Cambodian casino conglomerate and its affiliated businesses, which are accused of engaging in online fraud and human trafficking within the region. Officials also disclosed the seizure of $15 billion in bitcoin along with the freezing of London properties belonging to the alleged ring leaders.
Among those under scrutiny is 38-year-old Chen Zhi, the chairman of the controversial Prince Group which operates casinos, real estate projects, and a commercial bank in Cambodia. Chen reportedly has substantial ties to the country’s notoriously corrupt government and serves as an advisor to Prime Minister Hun Manet.
On Tuesday, the US Treasury Department classified the Prince Group as a “transnational criminal organization” (TCO).
Jin Bei Group
The sanctions also extend to the Jin Bei Group, an entertainment and leisure company affiliated with the Prince Group, boasting a flagship seven-story hotel and casino in the tourist destination of Sihanoukville.
A US federal inquiry in 2022 into a Chinese money-laundering operation in New York revealed that 259 Americans suffered a cumulative loss of $18 million to fraudsters linked to the Jin Bei Group.
Jin Bei brands itself on its website as the “largest operator in the Kingdom of Cambodia” and claims to be “leading the way for the highly anticipated, diverse high-end entertainment options in Asia!”
The group also emphasizes that “employees are its most crucial asset.”
However, the US Treasury offered a stark contrast in a press release, detailing “widespread trafficking, torture, and exploitation of enslaved individuals in relation to the operation of at least ten scam centers in Cambodia.”
Emergence of Scam Centers
In 2019, under pressure from Beijing, the Cambodian government outlawed online casinos, leading to the closure of numerous establishments. Criminal organizations commandeered these vacant properties, setting up scam operations that deceived individuals with false job offers before holding them captive to execute fraudulent schemes.
These schemes, known as “pig butchering,” entice victims to invest significant amounts into fake investment opportunities. Amnesty International has charged the Cambodian government with complicity in these frauds.
“Victims endure cruel methods of control at the hands of their captors, which include physical violence, social isolation, restricted movement, arbitrary fines, threats of sexual exploitation, and confiscation of personal documents and technology,” according to the Treasury Department. “Recent reports suggest individuals are experiencing horrendous conditions at locations connected to the Prince Group TCO.”
The unprecedented $15 billion bitcoin seizure represents the largest such action undertaken by the FBI. Among other assets frozen are a $16 million mansion on Avenue Road, one of London’s most prestigious streets, a $126 million office building in the financial district, and various properties in central London.