Chinese National Extradited to U.S. Over Alleged $36.9 Million Crypto Scam
Summary
U.S. prosecutors allege Zhen Zhao helped defraud 174 victims of more than $36.9 million through fake cryptocurrency investments. Extradited from the Netherlands, he faces money-laundering conspiracy charges.
Key points
- Prosecutors allege Zhao and accomplices contacted targets through texts, social media, phone calls, and dating services, then lured them into fake digital-asset investments.
- The co-conspirators allegedly used fake websites resembling cryptocurrency trading platforms to persuade victims to transfer funds.
- Prosecutors say more than $36.9 million from 174 U.S. victims was sent to a Bahamas account and converted to Tether (USDT) for transfer to a wallet in Cambodia.
- Zhao was charged in August 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
- Eight alleged accomplices have pleaded guilty; two were sentenced to 51 and 46 months in prison.
Article Details
- Event Type
- Extradition and arraignment of a man accused of participating in a cryptocurrency investment scam and money-laundering conspiracy.
- Impact
- Prosecutors allege the scheme stole more than $36.9 million from 174 victims in the United States. Victim funds were allegedly routed through an account at Deltec Bank, converted to Tether (USDT), and transferred to a digital-asset wallet in Cambodia.
Threat Actors
Products
Countries
Bahamasbank accounts to an account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas, which was opened under the name Axis Digital Limited.CambodiaProsecutors said that, together with accomplices in the United States and Cambodia, 44-year-old Zhen Zhao tricked victims into transferring large sums of money to attacker-controlled accounts, claiming that the fundsUnited Statesinvolvement in a cryptocurrency investment scam that stole nearly $37 million from 174 victims in the United States.