Five Men Plead Guilty in $36.9M International Crypto Scam

Five men have pleaded guilty to their roles in an elaborate $36.9 million international cryptocurrency scam targeting Americans, with the ill-gotten funds ultimately routed to a scam center in Cambodia.

According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, the defendants utilized shell companies and US bank accounts—specifically a Deltec Bank account in the Bahamas—to receive victim funds before converting them into Tether (USDT) and sending them to a cryptocurrency wallet controlled by the scam center in Cambodia.

The defendants targeted victims through social media and dating apps by building trust and convincing them to invest in a fabricated crypto investment opportunity. As the US Department of Justice (DOJ) stated: “Scammers would tell victims that their investments were appreciating in value when, in fact, those funds were stolen and not invested at all.”

The five men—Joseph Wong, Yicheng Zhang, Jose Somarriba, Shengsheng He, and Jingliang Su—reside or were found in or around the US, Spain, China, and Turkey. They were part of an extensive operation that included money laundering facilitated by the Lazarus Group and the Cambodian scam centers.

Operations of the Laundering Ring

Jose Somarriba and Shengsheng He founded the shell company “Axis Digital” and established a Deltec Bank account in the Bahamas for receiving the victims’ funds. Jingliang Su acted as a director, converting the ill-gotten funds into Tether (USDT), while Joseph Wong operated a money laundering network, wiring the funds to various international accounts.

Yicheng Zhang, in addition to managing Axis Digital, also oversaw two other US bank accounts for processing the illicit funds.

Criminals Face Prison Sentences

Jingliang Su, who remains in custody since November 2024, faces a potential five-year prison sentence scheduled for his Nov. 17 hearing.

Meanwhile, Yicheng Zhang, in custody since May 2024, and Jose Somarriba face 20-year prison sentences for money laundering conspiracy charges. The remaining two, Shengsheng He and Joseph Wong, also plead guilty and face up to five years for conspiracy charges related to operating an unlicensed money services business, the US Attorney’s Office said.

Fifteen individuals are now implicated in this case, as eight others have already pleaded guilty to money laundering charges linked to the scam operation.

US Treasury Aims to Block Cambodia-Based Laundering Hub

This incident underscores broader US efforts to combat crypto crime and money laundering, especially North Korea-linked groups like the Lazarus Group. Concurrently, the US Treasury—via the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)—has proposed blocking Huione Group, a Cambodian firm allegedly involved in Bitcoin laundering for state-sponsored actors.

The Treasury measure, initially proposed in May, seeks to restrict Huione Group from operating within the American financial system. William J. Adler, Regional Director for FinCEN’s Los Angeles Office, agreed that cutting off Huione Group would disrupt “a major money laundering infrastructure used by sophisticated cybercriminals and subject to the direction and control of a hostile foreign government.”

Initial steps, such as Telegram communication shutdowns affecting Huione affiliates in May, reportedly did not entirely halt activities as one affiliate, XinBi, quickly shifted operations, according to TRM Labs analytics.

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