The Prince Group Scam Empire is Now Exposed!!

In the first half of 2025, Malaysians lost RM1.12 billion to online scams, already 41.7 per cent higher than last year‘s total. Yet this alarming figure represents only a fraction of a much larger criminal economy operating beyond Malaysia’s borders. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the United States Institute of Peace, Cambodia‘s scam industry is worth between 12.5 billion and 19 billion United States dollars every year. Even the lower estimate is equal to sixty percent of the country’s official gross domestic product. With an estimated one hundred thousand people involved, Cambodia has become the global centre of large-scale scamming operations.

Against this backdrop, United States prosecutors have cast a spotlight on one of the most powerful conglomerates in Cambodia. An indictment unsealed on 14 October by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York accuses Chen Zhi, also known as Vincent, of leading vast networks of forced labour scam compounds through his conglomerate, Prince Group. Chen, who remains at large, faces charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Prince Group is widely known for its real estate development, financial services and consumer service businesses, including Prince Real Estate Group, Prince Huan Yu Real Estate Group, Prince Bank and Awesome Global Investment Group. Several Malaysians have previously held senior positions at Prince Bank, though none have been implicated in wrongdoing. Prosecutors claim that behind its corporate image, the group generated enormous illicit profits through fraudulent investment schemes directed by Chen and carried out by a close circle of senior executives and associates.

According to the indictment, these activities began around 2015 and continued until the present day. Prosecutors allege that Chen and his co conspirators exploited political influence across several countries, paying bribes to foreign officials to protect their compounds from law enforcement. The proceeds were allegedly laundered through professional money launderers as well as the groups own businesses, including online gambling platforms and cryptocurrency mining ventures.

Central to the fraudulent operations is a scheme known as pig butchering, a manipulation technique that gradually traps victims through carefully staged online relationships. Scammers initially make contact through social media or messaging apps, often pretending to have dialled the wrong number. They then build trust over days or months, before presenting fake investment opportunities. Victims are guided through fraudulent platforms that display false profits, encouraging them to invest more. Once enough money has been extracted, the scammers sever all communication.

Investigators say internal documents from Prince Group provided detailed instructions for carrying out these scams, including how to gain a victims confidence and how to create convincing social media profiles. The documents even advised using photographs of women who appeared “not too beautiful” to make the accounts more believable.

Under Chens direction, prosecutors allege that Prince Group operated at least ten scam compounds across Cambodia, including in Sihanoukville, Chrey Thom and Kampong Speu Province. These facilities were described as large complexes with dormitories, high walls and barbed wire. Many of the workers inside were migrant job seekers who were trafficked, confined and forced to commit fraud under threats of violence. Investigators also discovered industrial-scale infrastructure within the compounds, including millions of stolen phone numbers and automated “phone farms” with thousands of controlled social media accounts.

One co-conspirator allegedly claimed in 2018 that the group generated more than thirty million United States dollars a day from fraudulent investment schemes and related illicit activities.

The indictment also details the use of violence and bribes. In one example, Chen is said to have approved the beating of a problematic worker, instructing his associates only to ensure the person was not beaten to death. The illicit funds were then used for luxury travel, private jets, yachts, rare artwork, high end watches and vacation properties. Some proceeds were allegedly channelled back into the system by converting cryptocurrency into cash and then purchasing clean crypto assets.

On 1 November, CNA reported that the Royal Malaysia Police are searching for seven Malaysians wanted by Singapore authorities for suspected involvement in a Cambodian scam syndicate. It remains unclear whether the syndicate is linked to Chen.