Quote of the Day
In a landmark operation, U.S. authorities have seized 127,271 Bitcoins—valued at roughly $15 billion—from an international scam syndicate operating out of Cambodia. This unprecedented recovery, the largest in American history, marks a turning point in the global fight against cyber-enabled financial crime. Investigators traced the digital currency to a sprawling network of fraudulent investment schemes orchestrated by Chen Vincent Zhi, a prominent Cambodian businessman. The case not only exposes the dark underbelly of cryptocurrency but also highlights the growing sophistication of law enforcement in tracking illicit digital assets.
Shay Johnson
November 2, 2025
World’s Largest Crypto Seizure Announced—DOJ Takes Down $15B Pig-Butchering Empire Across 30 Nations
I heard a presentation on the pig butchering* scams about two years ago. The stories told were just heartbreaking. Lonely, frequently elderly people where completely drained of all their wealth and left with huge loans they were unable to repay. They were frequently convinced to borrow money from friends and family.
The authorities knew the geographical location of the scammer were. It was near the border with China. When the location was revealing in the presentation, I was of the mood to advocate for just bombing the place. If the local authorities would not shut them down, a few dozen bombs should do the job, I thought. Then they told of the slaves they held to implement the scams. Their situation was even worse than the financial scam victims. My high explosives solution to the problem suddenly became significantly less ethical.
That this evil empire has been broken up, some restitution is likely, and the slaves are being rescued is extremely good news to me.
* “Pig butchering” is a type of financial scam where fraudsters build trust with victims over time—often through social media or dating platforms—before convincing them to invest in fake or manipulated financial schemes, such as cryptocurrency or forex trading. The term refers to “fattening up” the victim with attention and false profits before “slaughtering” them by draining their funds. It’s a blend of romance scam and investment fraud, often run by organized criminal networks.
Cambodia doesn’t have a border with China. From the article, it appears that the Cambodian crook was operating out of Burma which does have a border with China in a region that has been lawless forever.
We should also worry about the malign intentions of government here. At least the rise of crypto has diverted them from the intent to abolish cash.
Wait what? I thought bitcoin was safe from the government? Oh well.
Glad to hear they’re finally going after the criminals.
Now do the US.
Start with Blackrock, Wall st., banking industrial complex, internet overlords, and the cartels. From the Mexican to the Israeli.
Or would that in and of itself totally cause a permanent government shutdown?
15 billion is a lot of theft. Excellent work in a reverse pig-butchering operation.
But we should compel ourselves to remember it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the REAL criminal syndicates that keep us all as slaves.
It was first presented to me as an alternative to cash to avoid government involvement. I looked at it and quickly realized it had no such security and decided it would never replace cash.
Yup, even gold and silver are denominated in cash.
I expect it to be used well into and well after the crash.
With varying value of course.
PS. you going to induct some power off the big lines and start your own bitcoin mining?
Or maybe with the big switch yard right there, you could set up the redneck data center?
No and no.
Even if I were interested in the first item, the lines are frequently patrolled with helicopters.
Data centers are very expensive and a lot of work. I have other things I want to spend my time and money on.