At the age of 37, Chen Zhi - a Chinese businessman of Cambodian nationality - is considered the largest "fraudster" in Southeast Asia, who turned a casino into a cybercrime and used cryptocurrency as a weapon of the underworld. But now, Chen Zhi has disappeared, leaving behind a transnational crime empire that is being sought after on many continents.
Chen Zhi, also known as the "boss with a child's face" - is the character accused of being behind a global online fraud, human trafficking and money laundering network.
The US and UK have imposed sanctions on 128 companies under Prince Group and 17 individuals from 7 different natures related to Chen Zhi's criminal empire. His assets in the UK and US have been frozen.
The US Treasury Department has officially added Chen Zhi and Prince Group to the list of transnational criminal organizations, accusing them of operating fraud and money laundering activities from Cambodia, earning billions of dollars through cryptocurrency. The US Department of Justice has prosecuted Chen Zhi for masterminding online fraud by the US court.
Chen Zhi's story sounds like a Netflix film. Originally from Fujian, China, Chen Zhi once tried to start a business in the online gaming industry. In 2010, Chen moved to Cambodia - a time when Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville were booming in C established establishments.
In 2014, Chen Zhi was naturalized as a Cambodian citizen. Just 1 year later, at the age of 27, Chen Zhi founded Prince Group - a comprehensive business group from real estate, 5-star hotels to a $16 billion ecological city project called Bay of Lights.
Chen Zhi also bought British nationality, Vanuatu and was deposed by Cambodia's Neak Oknha thanks to a donation of half a million USD.
With a flashy and polite image, Chen Zhi has appeared as a successful businessman, sponsoring scholarships and social projects. But behind that politeness is a sophisticated underground financial machine.
Whencasinoes become "fortifices" of cybercrime
Since 2019, when Cambodia banned online betting and Chinese tourists suddenly withdrew, many abandoned casinos have turned into fraud villages - where thousands of people have been detained and forced to commit online fraud.
While other groups collapsed, Chen Zhi pushed up. Chen Zhi bought a £12 million villa in London, a £95 million office building, real estate in New York, a private yacht, a personal plane and a UNESCO painting.
US investigators later seized $14 billion in Bitcoin, considered the largest cryptocurrency seizure in history. The US Treasury Department described Chen Zhi's empire as a "global online scammer, lubricated with blood and tears".
The "ghost" disappears
Amid a series of international sanctions, prosecution and investigations, Chen Zhi suddenly disappeared. Prince Group's website still describes Chen Zhi as "a well-respected benefactor," but no one knows where Chen Zhi is - whether on a sea cruise, in a secret villa or in a green urban area built by Chen Zhi himself.
Cambodian authorities have not yet provided any information about Chen Zhi's whereabouts. Meanwhile, law enforcement agencies from the US, UK, Singapore, Taiwan (China) to Hong Kong (China) are tightening the surrounding. Most recently, Hong Kong (China) police froze 2.75 billion HKD ($35252 million) in cash, stocks and funds related to Chen's network.
