A global task force led by the FBI has arrested 276 suspects and disrupted nine scam centers used for crypto investment schemes, officials announced Wednesday.
The FBI, working with police in Dubai, Thailand, and China, targeted international fraud rings that operated so-called "pig butchering" schemes, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Dubai police arrested 275 individuals, with three charged in the Southern District of California on counts of wire fraud and money laundering. Thai authorities also arrested one suspect.
The investigation began last year after FBI agents in San Diego identified multiple suspects and entities allegedly running crypto scam compounds. According to the statement, the group recruited individuals to work for three companies — Ko Thet Company, Sanduo Group, and Giant Company — which the authorities said functioned as scam centers.
The schemes followed a typical "pig butchering" model, where scammers build trust with victims over time before convincing them to invest in fraudulent crypto opportunities.
Specifically, the suspects allegedly targeted victims in the U.S. and other countries by promoting fictitious crypto investment returns. Victims' funds were funneled through fraudulent platforms and transferred to accounts held by the scammers, who then laundered the proceeds through additional crypto wallets, according to the statement.
The authorities said investigators have identified "millions of dollars" in losses linked to these cross-border crypto investment schemes.
"Fraudsters who target Americans from overseas cannot operate with impunity, no matter where in the world they reside," said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. "Scam center organizers and fraudsters who defraud Americans and others will face justice in American courts and in courts around the world."
"These scammers thought they were safe half a world away," said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon for the Southern District of California. "But their world has changed. Global crime now faces global justice."
Crypto-related fraud has been on the rise, with losses hitting a record $11.3 billion last year, accounting for more than half of the $20.9 billion in total internet crime losses tracked by the FBI, according to a report released earlier this month.
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