The US government has seized over $14 billion (£10.5 billion) in bitcoin and charged the founder of a Cambodian business empire with allegedly masterminding a massive cryptocurrency scam.
UK and Cambodian national Chen Zhi was charged on Tuesday in New York for allegedly engaging in a wire-fraud conspiracy and running a money laundering scheme.
Mr Chen's businesses were sanctioned by the US and the UK as part of a joint operation. The UK government says it has frozen assets owned by his network, including 19 properties in London - one of which is worth nearly £100 million ($133 million).
The BBC has contacted the Prince Holding Group for comment. An email sent to its general inquiries address was returned undelivered.
US prosecutors say it is one of the biggest financial takedowns in history and the largest ever seizure of bitcoin, with approximately 127,271 bitcoin being held by the US government.
Mr Chen, who remains at large, is accused of being the mastermind behind a sprawling cyber-fraud empire operating under his multi-national company, the Prince Group, said the US Department of Justice (DOJ).
The Cambodia-based group's website says its businesses include property development, financial, and consumer services. But the DOJ alleges that it runs one of Asia's largest transnational criminal organizations.
Unwitting victims were contacted online and convinced to transfer cryptocurrency based on false promises that the funds would be invested and generate profits, the DOJ said.
Prosecutors alleged that the company, under Mr Chen's direction, built and operated at least ten scam compounds throughout Cambodia. Mr Chen was accused of managing the compounds and tracking profits from the scams, according to prosecutors.
His accomplices allegedly procured millions of mobile phone numbers and set up phone farms to conduct call center scams, according to court documents. Two of these facilities had 1,250 mobile phones that controlled around 76,000 social media accounts for scams.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg described the Prince Group as a criminal enterprise built on human suffering. It also trafficked workers, who were confined in prison-like compounds and forced to carry out scams online, targeting thousands of victims worldwide, he said.
Mr Chen and his accomplices allegedly used the criminal proceeds for luxury travel and entertainment, including extravagant purchases like watches, private jets, and rare artwork, including a Picasso painting.
If convicted, Mr Chen faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in jail.
In Britain, Mr Chen and his accomplices allegedly incorporated businesses in the British Virgin Islands and invested in UK property. His network's assets include a £100 million office building in Central London, a £12 million mansion in North London, and seventeen flats in the city.
The Prince Group has also been sanctioned in the US and labeled as a criminal organization. They were accused of ruining the lives of vulnerable people and buying up London homes to store their money, said UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.
Cooper said, Together with our US allies, we are taking decisive action to combat the growing transnational threat posed by this network - upholding human rights, protecting British nationals, and keeping dirty money off our streets.
The foreign office stated that Mr Chen and the Prince Group built casinos and compounds used as scam centers and laundered the proceeds.
Four businesses linked to the alleged scams - The Prince Group, Jin Bei Group, Golden Fortune Resorts World, and Byex Exchange - have also been sanctioned.
Fraud Minister Lord Hanson emphasized that fraudsters prey on the vulnerable, stealing life savings and devastating lives, asserting that they will not tolerate this behavior.
