53 h. ago Myanmar junta raids scam hub powered by Elon Musk’s Starlink

Myanmar’s junta raided one of the country’s most notorious internet scam centres and seized Starlink devices, it said on Monday, after an investigation had revealed an explosion in their use in the billion-dollar black market. Internet sweat shops where workers scam unsuspecting foreigners with business or romance schemes have thrived in war-ravaged Myanmar’s lawless border regions since the coronavirus pandemic. A transnational push by Thai, Chinese and Myanmar authorities starting in February...

Politics

3 d. ago Man accused of running Cambodian scam farm empire has Hong Kong business links

A Chinese-born businessman sanctioned by the US and UK for alleged human trafficking through a Cambodian-based cybercrime empire and scam farm has operations in Hong Kong and a related company owns an office building in the city, the Post has found. The discovery followed an announcement by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control, which on Tuesday sanctioned more than 100 business entities including 11 Hong Kong companies linked to Chen Zhi, CEO and chairman of Cambodian conglomerate Prince...

Politics

4 d. ago US seizure of tycoon’s US$13 billion in bitcoin raises anonymity questions

The seizure by US authorities of US$13.4 billion worth of bitcoin from an alleged Cambodian criminal has raised questions over the safety of the digital assets and prompted frantic speculation in the crypto community over how the feat was accomplished. Weak private keys and insider theft could have made it possible for US law-enforcement agencies to track down the bitcoin privately held by Chen Zhi, who is accused of running a massive “pig butchering” operation in Cambodia, according to experts....

Economics

5 d. ago Kidnapped, trapped, forced to scam: inside Cambodia’s Chinese

Rows of grey buildings with thick iron bars line the streets of Sihanoukville, about 250km (155 miles) southwest of Phnom Penh. Near the city’s Chinatown stands Cambodia’s largest so-called yuanqu – a slang term in Chinese criminal circles meaning “scam compound”, derived from yuanqu, or industrial estate. Inside these complexes, online crimes such as voice phishing and romance scams are part of daily life. Young people from South Korea and other countries are kidnapped or lured by Chinese-run...

Events

5 d. ago 3 Singaporeans sanctioned over links to Cambodia’s Chen Zhi scam network

Three Singaporeans have been sanctioned for alleged links to a fraud empire involving a Cambodian conglomerate and its China-born chief executive, as part of the largest crackdown by the United States and United Kingdom on cybercriminal networks in Southeast Asia. Of the three, Chen Xiuling, also known as Karen, has resigned from her position as an independent non-executive director at Taiwan-based live streaming platform 17Live Group, based on a company announcement on the Singapore Exchange...

Politics

6 d. ago Who is Chen Zhi, the ‘untouchable’ tycoon linked to Cambodia’s scam hubs?

US and UK authorities unveiled sanctions this week against Chen Zhi, a British-Cambodian tycoon accused of running cyber scam operations where workers, some trafficked, carry out transnational fraud schemes that have netted billions of dollars. Here’s a look at the man, indicted in the US, and his sanctioned company, Prince Holding Group. Who is Prince Group’s Chen Zhi? One of Cambodia’s largest conglomerates, Prince Holding Group, has operated across more than 30 countries with interests in...

Politics

7 d. ago Cambodian tycoon exposed as kingpin behind US$14 billion crypto fraud empire

The US government has seized more than US$14 billion in bitcoin and charged the founder of a Cambodian conglomerate in a massive cryptocurrency scam, accusing him and unnamed co-conspirators of exploiting forced labour to dupe would-be investors and using the proceeds to buy yachts, jets and a Picasso painting. In an indictment unsealed on Tuesday, Brooklyn federal prosecutors charged Prince Holding Group chairman Chen Zhi with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. At the same...

Economics

8 d. ago Will Cambodia’s scam epidemic cause South Koreans to shun country?

The death of a South Korean student in Cambodia, leading to Seoul summoning the Cambodian ambassador, is set to dent tourism and Phnom Penh’s reputation in the eyes of the Korean public, but ties between both sides may not be drastically affected, according to analysts. Last Friday, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun summoned the Cambodian ambassador in Seoul to protest the death of the student, linked to an employment scam in Cambodia. Cho also called for stronger measures to tackle the rising number of...

Politics

2 w. ago Alice Guo: how 1 case unmasked weaknesses in Philippine institutions

Alice Guo, the controversial former mayor linked to a raided scam hub and accused of faking her Philippine citizenship, is facing 70 new criminal complaints along with her relatives, including document fraud and violations of laws barring foreigners from owning property or running businesses. Analysts say the case highlights how foreign syndicates have exploited gaps in the country’s legal and political systems to gain a foothold in sensitive sectors – from local government to online gambling –...

Politics