DOJ forms strike force to target $10 billion Southeast Asia crypto scams

The Justice Department launched a Scam Center Strike Force to investigate, disrupt and prosecute cryptocurrency investment schemes based in Southeast Asia that it estimates defraud Americans of nearly $10 billion each year.

The interagency team includes the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the department’s Criminal Division, the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service. Officials reported more than $400 million in cryptocurrency tied to these operations has been seized and forfeited, with forfeiture proceedings underway for an additional $80 million intended for victim restitution.

According to the department, the strike force will focus on transnational networks operating from compounds in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. 

Investigators plan to target U.S.-based infrastructure that enables the frauds, including internet hosting and social media accounts used to recruit victims, and will work with American companies to block access to offshore scam hubs.

Authorities describe a consistent playbook: victims in the U.S. are steered to fake crypto websites and mobile apps-often hosted domestically-where they are persuaded to transfer funds. The money is moved through layers of accounts and digital wallets overseas, complicating recovery without coordinated seizures.

U.S. pressure is unfolding alongside regional actions. Myanmar’s military authorities have detained thousands of foreign nationals this year in connection with online fraud and announced plans to demolish more than 600 buildings linked to the activity.

Earlier this week, Thai authorities also extradited to Beijing a Chinese-born Cambodian accused of involvement in scam operations, reflecting pressure from multiple governments to shut down cross-border networks.

In a related U.S. case last month, prosecutors charged the chairman of Cambodian conglomerate Prince Group with running what they described in court filings as a “sprawling cyber fraud empire,” leading to the seizure of Bitcoin worth about $15 billion in what they called the largest-ever forfeiture action.

The strike force’s mandate includes working with U.S.-based service providers to identify and disable accounts, servers and other tools used by fraud rings. The group is pursuing criminal cases against organizers and facilitators while tracing domestic financial flows to disrupt the pipeline that moves funds from U.S. victims to overseas operators and to speed asset recovery.