Protocols & Policy · Enforcement
DOJ extradites Chinese national in $36.9M Cambodia crypto scam
Zheng Zhao was arraigned in the Central District of California after extradition from the Netherlands for an alleged money-laundering role in a Cambodian scam-center scheme that moved victim funds into Tether.
The U.S. Justice Department says a Chinese national was extradited from the Netherlands and arraigned in the Central District of California over an alleged role in a Cambodia-based cryptocurrency investment scam that moved more than $36.9 million in victim funds into Tether (USDT) [1].
Zheng Zhao, 44, appeared in the Central District of California after extradition for his "alleged role in an international cryptocurrency investment conspiracy carried out from scam centers in the Kingdom of Cambodia that targeted U.S. citizens," the department's Office of Public Affairs said in an Oct. 23 release. Prosecutors identified 174 U.S. victims [1].
According to the release, which attributes the account to court documents, overseas co-conspirators contacted Americans through unsolicited social media, calls, texts and dating apps, steered them to fake trading websites, and told them their investments were rising while the money had been stolen. More than $36.9 million "were transferred from U.S. bank accounts controlled by the co-conspirators to a single account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas." The department said Zhao and other co-conspirators "arranged for Deltec Bank to convert victim funds to the stablecoin Tether (USDT) and to transfer the converted funds to a digital asset wallet controlled in Cambodia," from which USDT went to scam-center leaders in the region [1]. USDT is a dollar-pegged stablecoin.
Zhao was charged in August 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison, the department said. A criminal complaint "is merely an allegation," the release states, and "all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law" [1].
Eight co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty, the department said, including ShengSheng He and Jingliang Su, who were sentenced to 51 and 46 months for conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business [1].
Sources
- U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, "Chinese National Extradited for Alleged Role in Multimillion-Dollar Cryptocurrency Scam Targeting U.S. Citizens," Oct. 23, 2026, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/chinese-national-extradited-alleged-role-multimillion-dollar-cryptocurrency-scam-targeting, accessed Oct. 24, 2026, 9:29 a.m. ET.
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