Vietnamese National Charged in $16 Million 'Pig Butchering' Crypto Scam

A Vietnamese national, Trung Nguyen Van, has been charged with money laundering for his involvement in a massive 'pig butchering' cryptocurrency scam that defrauded a victim of $16 million worth of digital assets.

Van, 37, entered the United States through the San Ysidro border crossing on September 22 and was arrested two days later at Los Angeles International Airport before boarding a flight to Taiwan.

The victim had transferred approximately $16 million in cryptocurrency between June and August this year, believing they were investing in a crypto investment platform called 'Triangle.'

After collecting the funds, Van transferred them to a private, unhosted crypto wallet off the centralized blockchain network.