Namibia Revokes Bail for Eight in Raylon Crypto Scam; Interpol Asked

At a May 20 hearing, Judge Philanda Christiaan revoked bail for eight suspects in the Raylon Investments case after they failed to appear for pretrial hearings. State advocate Erick Moyo informed the Windhoek High Court that six of the missing suspects had been traced to China and that authorities had asked Interpol for assistance.

The six Chinese defendants are named Guo Linjie, Li Zirian, Shi Zijun, Chen Wuyu, Wu Nengjun and Wu Weiyang. The two other absent defendants are Zheng Haifeng, a Vanuatu citizen, and Ghim Hwee Chris Ang of Singapore. Arrest warrants for the eight were issued on April 22.

Prosecutors allege the syndicate ran a pig-butchering romance and cryptocurrency fraud scheme through a front company called Raylon Investments between December 2022 and October 2023. The state alleges the group recruited unemployed Namibians and forced them to create fake social media profiles posing as European and American women to develop relationships with targets abroad.

Once trust was established, victims were persuaded to transfer funds into cryptocurrency accounts controlled by the syndicate. Investigators estimate the operation extracted about $267,800 from victims in multiple countries.

Seven co-defendants who appeared in court on May 20 include three Chinese nationals, a Cuban citizen and three Namibian nationals. They face a combined 65 counts, including 57 counts of human trafficking, as well as racketeering, fraud and money laundering. The present defendants were ordered to return for a third pretrial hearing on July 22, 2026.

All suspects were arrested in October 2023 and were released on bail at various times in 2024. Judge Christiaan ordered the roughly $29,800 in combined bail deposits forfeited to the state after the eight defendants failed to appear. Prosecutors have asked Interpol to locate the missing individuals and secure their return to Namibia to face the pending charges.