Chinese national Zhen/Zheng Zhao extradited from Netherlands over $36.9M pig butchering crypto scam targeting 174 US victims
Matéria consolidada. Reúne 2 matérias que o Tifon tinha publicado separadamente sobre a mesma história. A IA reescreveu o relatório com o que as 2 fontes trouxeram em 27/10/2026 00:01; os links antigos trazem para cá.
Zhen Zhao (spelled Zheng Zhao by cyberscoop.com), a 44-year-old Chinese national, was extradited from the Netherlands and arraigned in California on a charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries up to 20 years in prison. The U.S. Justice Department says he and his co-conspirators ran a cryptocurrency investment scam, commonly called pig butchering or romance baiting, including from scam centers in Cambodia. The scheme defrauded at least 174 US victims of about $36.9 million (bleepingcomputer.com; cyberscoop.com says nearly $37 million). Zhao was charged in August 2025 (bleepingcomputer.com). Eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty, including Shengsheng He and Jingliang Su, who were sentenced to 51 and 46 months respectively (cyberscoop.com; bleepingcomputer.com confirms the 51 and 46 month sentences). The U.S. Secret Service announced the case and stressed its focus on disrupting the financial infrastructure of scam centers (cyberscoop.com). For context, bleepingcomputer.com cites the FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report, which puts investment scam losses at over $8.6 billion across 72,984 complaints, up from $6.5 billion in 2024.
Detalhes técnicos
- Initial contact: The ring approached victims proactively through unsolicited text messages, social media, phone calls and online dating services. It built trust first, then promoted fraudulent digital asset investments (bleepingcomputer.com; cyberscoop.com).
- Fake platforms: Co-conspirators built fake websites imitating legitimate cryptocurrency trading platforms. Victims were persuaded to send funds through them and were told their investments were gaining value (bleepingcomputer.com; cyberscoop.com).
- Laundering path: Victims wired over $36.9 million from US bank accounts to an account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas, opened under the name Axis Digital Limited (bleepingcomputer.com). The funds were converted to Tether (USDT) and moved to a digital wallet controlled in Cambodia. Co-conspirators there passed the proceeds on to the leaders of scam centers and scam networks across the region (bleepingcomputer.com; cyberscoop.com).
- US-based launderers: Joseph Wong, based in California, managed a network of money launderers in Los Angeles. They registered shell companies, opened US bank accounts and transferred victim funds to international bank accounts (cyberscoop.com).
- Zhao's role: He worked with accomplices in the United States and Cambodia (bleepingcomputer.com).
Relatos divergentes
- Defendant's name: bleepingcomputer.com gives "Zhen Zhao", while cyberscoop.com gives "Zheng Zhao". The sources do not say which is correct. The name in the Justice Department release is not quoted in either.
- Loss amount: bleepingcomputer.com reports more than $36.9 million, while cyberscoop.com reports nearly $37 million and "at least" 174 victims. These are most likely rounding differences, not a real discrepancy.
Linha do tempo
-
Chinese national Zheng Zhao extradited from Netherlands over $37M crypto investment scam targeting 174 U.S. victims
ler a análise desta fonte ocultar
A 44-year-old Chinese national, Zheng Zhao, was extradited from the Netherlands to the United States and arraigned on a conspiracy to commit money laundering charge, which carries up to 20 years in prison. The U.S. Justice Department says Zhao and his co-conspirators ran a global cryptocurrency investment scam, including from scam centers in Cambodia, that defrauded at least 174 U.S. residents of nearly $37 million. Eight co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty, including Shengsheng He and Jingliang Su, who were sentenced to 51 and 46 months in prison respectively. The case was announced by the U.S. Secret Service, which stressed its focus on disrupting the financial infrastructure of scam centers.
Technical Details
- Victims were approached proactively via social media, phone calls, text messages and online dating sites, and a trust relationship was built before crypto investments were promoted.
- Victims were directed to send funds through fake sites imitating legitimate trading platforms and were told their investments were growing.
- Funds went from U.S. bank accounts controlled by the conspirators to an account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas, were converted to Tether, then moved to a digital wallet controlled in Cambodia.
- The proceeds were distributed to leaders of scam networks across the region.
- Joseph Wong, based in California, managed a network of money launderers in Los Angeles who registered shell companies, opened U.S. bank accounts and transferred victim funds to international bank accounts.
-
Chinese national Zhen Zhao extradited from Netherlands over $36.9M pig butchering crypto scam targeting 174 US victims
ler a análise desta fonte ocultar
A Chinese national, Zhen Zhao (44), was arraigned in California after being extradited from the Netherlands for his alleged role in a cryptocurrency investment scam, commonly called pig butchering or romance baiting. The scheme defrauded 174 victims in the United States of more than $36.9 million. Zhao was charged in August 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and faces up to 20 years in prison. Eight accomplices from the same international ring have pleaded guilty, and two have been sentenced to 51 and 46 months. The article cites the FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report, which puts investment scam losses at over $8.6 billion (72,984 complaints), up from $6.5 billion in 2024.
Technical Details
- The ring contacted targets through unsolicited text messages, social media, phone calls and online dating services to build trust, then promoted fraudulent digital asset investments and claimed the victims' funds were gaining value.
- Co-conspirators created fake websites that imitated real cryptocurrency trading platforms and persuaded victims to send funds through them.
- Victims wired over $36.9 million from US bank accounts to an account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas, opened under the name Axis Digital Limited.
- Deltec Bank converted the funds to the Tether (USDT) stablecoin and moved them to a digital asset wallet controlled in Cambodia. Co-conspirators there passed the USDT on to the leaders of scam centers across the region.
- Zhao worked with accomplices in the United States and Cambodia.