Cambodia extradites alleged scam boss to China

ISTANBUL

Cambodia has extradited an alleged scam boss to China, the Southeast Asian nation’s Interior Ministry said.

Chinese national Chen Zhi, founder and chairman of Prince Group, was arrested and extradited to China, state-run AKP News reported, citing a ministry statement released late Wednesday.

Two other Chinese nationals, Xu Ji Liang and Shao Ji Hui, were also arrested and transferred to China, the ministry said, adding the extradition was conducted “within the scope of cooperation in combating transnational crime and pursuant to a request” from Beijing.

Born in the eastern Chinese province of Fujian in 1987, Chen became a naturalized Cambodian citizen in 2014, and his nationality was revoked last month, paving the way for his extradition.

He is accused of operating a transnational crime network, engaging in cryptocurrency fraud, human trafficking and money laundering.

Soon after his transfer to China, the National Bank of Cambodia said that Prince Bank Plc was “placed under liquidation and is no longer permitted to conduct banking operations, including accepting deposits or providing loans,” the daily Khmer Times reported.

Chen had founded the bank and has served as the chairman of Prince Group since 2015, overseeing operations of dozens of companies – from real estate to financial services – across more than 30 countries, according to a report by the daily South China Morning Post.

In October, the US charged Chen with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering, seizing about $15 billion worth of bitcoin, it alleged belonged to Chen.

Chen was sanctioned in both the US and Britain, while Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan also seized assets or detained individuals related to Chen’s group, the report said.