Cambodia Extradites Alleged Scammer Chen Zhi to China

The Cambodian government announced it had extradited Chen Zhi to China in response to a request from Beijing, authorities said, handing over a man accused of running scamming operations from Cambodia. Chen, 38, was naturalized as a Cambodian citizen in 2014 after leaving China, paid for citizenship and served as an adviser to Cambodia’s prime minister, where he was given the title of lord, the report said.

His company, Prince Group, was sanctioned by the United States and Britain in October; Cambodia had previously said only that it hoped those countries had “sufficient proof.” Chinese state television showed officers escorting a hooded and handcuffed Chen, and China’s Ministry of Public Security called the arrest “another great achievement under China-Cambodia law enforcement cooperation.” Cambodia said the extradition included two other Chinese nationals and followed months of cooperation with China.

U.S. federal prosecutors filed an indictment in October charging Chen with wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy and said they had seized $15 billion in cryptocurrency they described as proceeds from his schemes. According to U.S. prosecutors, Prince Group built and operated at least 10 compounds in Cambodia that functioned as forced-labor camps where workers were coerced to commit cyberfraud; the company has denied involvement.

Key Topics

World, Chen Zhi, Prince Group, Cambodia, China, Prince Bank