Chen has also been indicted by the United States over the scam centres. Cambodian authorities “have arrested three Chinese nationals namely Chen Zhi, Xu Ji Liang, and Shao Ji Hui and extradited (them) to the People’s Republic of China”, Cambodia’s interior ministry said in a statement. Chen has also been indicted by the United States.
The operation was carried out on Tuesday “within the scope of cooperation in combating transnational crime” and according to a request from Chinese authorities “following several months of joint investigative cooperation”, it said. Chen’s Cambodian nationality was “revoked by a Royal Decree” in December, the interior ministry added.
Chinese authorities did not immediately comment on Chen’s arrest and extradition late Wednesday. US authorities in October unsealed an indictment against Chen, a businessman accused of presiding over forced labour camps in Cambodia where trafficked workers carried out cryptocurrency fraud schemes that have netted billions of dollars.
Chen is the founder of Prince Holding Group, a multinational conglomerate that authorities say served as a front for “one of Asia’s largest transnational criminal organizations”, according to the US Department of Justice. The Justice Department also filed the largest forfeiture action in its history, seizing approximately 127,271 bitcoin worth more than $11 billion at current prices.
The internet cons target victims worldwide, causing billions in losses. Cambodia hosts dozens of scam centres with tens of thousands of people perpetrating online scams — some willingly and others trafficked — in a multibillion-dollar illicit industry, experts say.
