Five Plead Guilty To $37M Crypto Scam Scheme
Five men pleaded guilty to participating in a $36.9 million international crypto scam targeting Americans, with funds sent to a crypto scam center in Cambodia. The scammers used shell companies and U.S. bank accounts to collect stolen funds, converting them into Tether (USDT) for transfer to a Cambodian-controlled wallet. The defendants contacted victims via social media and dating apps, falsely claiming their investments were profitable. Joseph Wong, Yicheng Zhang, Jose Somarriba, Shengsheng He, and Jingliang Su operated the scheme, with Somarriba and He founding "Axis Digital" in the Bahamas. Zhang and Wong face 20-year sentences for money laundering, while the others could receive up to five years for operating an unlicensed money service. Eight individuals have now pleaded guilty in connection with this operation. The U.S. Treasury is also seeking to block Cambodia-based Huione Group from the American banking system due to its ties with North Korea's Lazarus Group, accused of laundering cryptocurrency.
