Crypto scammers plead guilty to a $37 million scam targeting Americans
Five men have pleaded guilty to their involvement in an international cryptocurrency scam worth $36.9 million aimed at American citizens, whose funds were ultimately sent to a crypto scam center in Cambodia.
The scammers funneled the stolen funds through fake companies and U.S. bank accounts before converting the money into Tether (USDT) and transferring it to a cryptocurrency wallet based in Cambodia, the Central District of California's Prosecutor's Office reported on Monday.
The guilty pleas reflect the U.S. government's campaign against crypto scams and money laundering networks operating from Asia, especially those linked to the Lazarus Group, backed by the North Korean state.
The defendants, Joseph Wong, Yicheng Zhang, José Somarriba, Shengsheng He, and Jingliang Su, contacted victims directly through social media, messaging platforms, and dating apps, engaging in long conversations through messages and even calling victims to gain their trust and convince them to invest in their cryptocurrency investment scheme.
"The scammers told victims that their investments were appreciating when, in fact, those funds were stolen and not invested at all," said the Department of Justice.
The five men who pleaded guilty were spread across the United States, Spain, China, and Turkey.