The Federal Bureau of Investigation says it has dismantled a vast international crypto fraud network, seized a record USD$8 billion in digital assets and arrested hundreds of suspects tied to organized crime groups operating scam compounds across Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Announced on Monday, the operation also freed nearly 2,000 people whom investigators say criminal organizations forced to run online investment and romance scams targeting victims around the world.
The FBI said the largest seizure came during its investigation into Chen Zhi, chief executive officer of Prince Holding Group in Cambodia. Agents confiscated more than 127,000 bitcoin linked to the case. Officials said the cryptocurrency was worth more than USD$8 billion at current prices and may have exceeded USD$15 billion when authorities seized it. They described the forfeiture as the largest in U.S. government history.
Authorities charged Zhi with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
Meanwhile, investigators identified the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army as one of the main organizations behind the scams. The armed militia operates in Myanmar and allegedly maintains close ties to Chinese organized crime. The U.S. government has designated the group as a transnational criminal organization and previously imposed Treasury sanctions over large-scale fraud operations.
The FBI said similar scam compounds operated in several countries across Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Officials believe many of the operations specifically targeted American victims through fake cryptocurrency investments, romance scams and other online schemes.
Additionally, the bureau said investigations remain active as authorities work with international partners to dismantle more facilities connected to organized crime.
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Dubai police arrested 275 people connected to crypto criminal enterprise
FBI Director Kash Patel said scam compounds function as sophisticated criminal enterprises rather than ordinary call centres. He said the organizations steal from victims, launder money and exploit workers on a massive scale.
Patel also said the bureau has led multiple international operations during the past year. According to the FBI, those efforts resulted in nearly 300 arrests, the rescue of almost 2,000 trafficking victims and the disruption of more than USD$8 billion in scam-related activity.
He added that investigators would continue pursuing anyone who targets Americans, using every available federal resource to dismantle criminal networks.
In Thailand, authorities seized thousands of smartphones and other office equipment during raids connected to the investigation. Photographs released by the FBI showed large collections of electronic devices recovered from the compounds.
Meanwhile, police in Dubai arrested 275 people during a joint operation with the FBI. Officials said six suspects will be extradited to the United States to face federal criminal charges.
Investigators estimated each of the nine compounds raided in Dubai generated roughly USD$6 million in fraud proceeds every year.
Authorities also accused Prince Holding Group of operating similar heavily guarded scam compounds in several countries.
An FBI official said that the bureau has made dismantling these operations a priority during the past 12 months.
The official described one case involving a single victim who lost approximately USD$3 million in a romance scam. Investigators also linked comparable fraud schemes to several suicides in previous years, particularly extortion cases involving teenagers.
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Starlink suspended over 7,000 satellite terminals connected to scam
Furthermore, investigators said many compounds relied on human trafficking victims rather than willing employees. Criminal groups allegedly recruited workers by promising legitimate jobs, attractive salaries and work visas before trapping them inside secured compounds.
According to the FBI, victims often faced threats, beatings and other forms of abuse if they refused to participate in online fraud.
The bureau also partnered with Starlink, a satellite internet service operated by Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) chief executive Elon Musk’s aerospace company, to identify internet terminals used by scammers. Investigators supplied geolocation information that helped identify fraudulent activity linked to Starlink equipment.
Subsequently, Starlink suspended more than 7,000 satellite terminals operating in Myanmar that investigators connected to scam operations.
The investigation began after complaints reached the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, commonly known as IC3, during 2025.
According to the bureau, IC3 received nearly 72,000 complaints involving cryptocurrency investment fraud that year. Victims reported combined losses exceeding USD$7.5 billion.
However, investigators believe actual losses were much higher because many victims never report financial crimes.
The United States Institute of Peace estimated international criminal syndicates steal roughly USD$64 billion every year through similar operations.
Operation Blackout served as the umbrella investigation for several coordinated enforcement actions.
One investigation, called Operation Zephyr Exodus, focused on Prince Holding Group and its alleged scam network.
Additionally, Operation Sand Dollar targeted organized crime groups operating scam compounds throughout Asia while defrauding American citizens from facilities in the United Arab Emirates.
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Authorities arrested two suspects in Thailand
Operation Haochen focused on the Tai Chang scam compound in Kyaukhat, Myanmar, an area controlled by the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army. Investigators connected the operation to Chinese criminal organizations and seized approximately USD$30 million linked to Tai Chang and related scam compounds.
Meanwhile, the Shunda Compound Takedown brought together the FBI and Thai law enforcement agencies. Authorities arrested two suspects in Thailand and seized a Telegram channel investigators said recruiters used to lure trafficking victims into Cambodian scams that impersonated law enforcement officers.
The FBI also launched a prevention initiative called Operation Level Up.
The program identifies people who appear to be victims of cryptocurrency investment fraud and warns them before they lose additional money.
Consequently, investigators contacted 8,935 potential victims through the initiative. The FBI said 77 per cent of those individuals did not realize they were being defrauded.
Officials estimated the warnings prevented approximately USD$562 million in additional financial losses.
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