Chinese Citizens Arrested for Laundering $73 Million in Pig Slaughter Crypto Scam

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has charged two arrested Chinese nationals with allegedly orchestrating a hog slaughter scam that laundered at least $73 million from victims through shell companies.

The individuals, Daren Li, 41, and Yicheng Zhang, 38, were arrested in Atlanta and Los Angeles on April 12 and May 16, respectively.

The foreign nationals were “accused of conducting a fund laundering scheme amounting to at least $73 million related to an international cryptocurrency investment scam,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said She said.

Prosecutors accused Li, Zhang and their co-conspirators of running an international syndicate that laundered funds obtained through cryptocurrency investment scams.

As part of the fraudulent operation, victims were allegedly tricked into transferring millions of dollars into U.S. bank accounts opened in the names of various shell companies.

“A network of money launderers then facilitated the transfer of those funds to other domestic and international bank accounts and cryptocurrency platforms in a manner designed to conceal the source, nature, ownership and control of the funds,” the DoJ.

The funds are believed to have been laundered through U.S. financial institutions into bank accounts in the Bahamas, then later converted into USDT or Tether and sent to cryptocurrency wallets, including one controlled by Li.

Specifically, Li and Zhang oversaw lower-level conspirators who transferred the proceeds overseas to bank accounts at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas. At least one of the bank accounts was operated with Li’s financial assistance, and Zhang also received victims’ funds directly, according to the unsealed indictment.

Both were charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and six counts of international money laundering. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison on each charge.

Pig slaughter scams often involve scammers approaching wealthy, lonely targets using messaging apps, dating services and social media platforms to build trust and convince them to invest in different programs that claim to offer better returns, only to then transfer their money into wallets under their control.

In December 2023, the U.S. Govt announced charges against four citizens for their alleged participation in an illicit scheme that netted them more than $80 million through cryptocurrency investment scams.

Then last month, Google filed a lawsuit in the United States against two app developers based in Shenzhen and Hong Kong, respectively, for flooding the Play Store with fake crypto apps to carry out cryptocurrency theft using similar tactics.

Countries such as Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and the Philippines have also emerged as countries hotbed of romance scamsoften luring unsuspecting people with promises of lucrative jobs to transport them to so-called “scam factories,” where they are forced to participate in the operation.

A recent report published by BBC News details how a 24-year-old Sri Lankan, recruited for a data entry job, was taken to Myawaddy, a town in southeastern Myanmar, and forcibly detained in a camp run by “Chinese-speaking mobsters”. .”

Furthermore, the individual, identified as Ravi (name changed), was tortured for refusing to participate, having his clothes torn off and electric shocks being given to his legs.

“I spent 16 days in cell for not obeying,” he said quoted as saying to the British broadcaster. “They only gave me water mixed with cigarette butts and ash to drink.”

In another case, a 21-year-old from the Indian state of Maharashtra was trafficked to Myanmar along with five other Indian men and two Filipino women in August 2022, but was eventually released after paying a ransom.

INTERPOL has described the situation as a fraud fueled by industrial-scale human trafficking, with the US State Department denouncing organized crime syndicates based in China for posing as labor brokers to recruit people with knowledge of English from Africa and Asia.

Two brothers arrested for stealing $25 million in new cryptocurrency heist

The development comes as the DoJ unsealed an indictment against Anton Peraire-Bueno, 24, of Boston, and James Pepaire-Bueno, 28, of New York, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. They each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each charge.

“The allegations in the indictment arise from an alleged new scheme by the defendants to exploit the very integrity of the Ethereum blockchain to fraudulently obtain approximately $25 million in cryptocurrency in approximately 12 seconds,” the DoJ said. She said.

The brothers, who studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), would use their skills to carry out the new scheme in early April 2023 which involved a “first-of-its-kind manipulation” of the protocols underlying the blockchain Ethereum.

This allowed the defendants to fraudulently access pending transactions, alter the movement of electronic currency, and ultimately route $25 million in cryptocurrency from victims to their accounts through a series of transactions designed to obscure ownership of the stolen funds.

“Anton Peraire-Bueno and James Pepaire-Bueno manipulated and tampered with the process and protocols by which transactions are validated and added to the Ethereum blockchain,” the DoJ said, adding that they “meticulously planned” the attack for several months.

At the same time, they also took steps to cover their tracks by hiding their identities and hiding their ill-gotten gains by creating shell companies, private cryptocurrency addresses, and foreign cryptocurrency exchanges. THE MEV-Boost the vulnerability exploited to compromise the integrity of the Ethereum blockchain was subsequently corrected.

“The Peraire-Bueno brothers stole $25 million in Ethereum cryptocurrency through a technologically sophisticated and cutting-edge scheme that they planned for months and executed in seconds,” Monaco said. “As cryptocurrency markets continue to evolve, the Department will continue to root out fraud, support victims, and restore confidence in these markets.”

Did you find this article interesting? Follow us on Twitter  AND LinkedIn to read the most exclusive content we publish.


Fuente