$52M in Crypto Seized in Global Crackdown on Online Scam Networks

The US Department of Justice has announced that its Scam Center Strike Force helped local authorities in Madagascar take down 13 Chinese-run scam compounds. The operation resulted in the restraint of approximately $52 million in cryptocurrency involved in money laundering, bringing the total restrained by the Scam Center Strike Force to around $938 million.

The US Department of Justice created a unit last year tasked with fighting online scam networks that use cryptocurrency and are based in Southeast Asia, operating on behalf of presumed Chinese crime gangs. The unit's latest actions included taking down the Telegram channels of Xinbi Guarantee, a scamming marketplace, and seizing $52 million in crypto money.

US Attorney Jeanne Pirro stated that Shinbi Marketplace has over 650,000 users and is where vendors market their services to scam operations, including creating custom scam investment and laundering websites. The US Treasury simultaneously announced sanctions against Shinbi Guarantee, which was already hit by British sanctions, and two entities supporting its activities.

The operation also led to the arrest of 500 scammers in Madagascar, with over 50 Chinese citizens being sent back home after being convicted of crimes related to online scams. Pirro noted that these networks are spreading across the globe, operating not just in Southeast Asia but also in hubs across Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Central America.