Extradited From the Netherlands: Chinese National Charged in $36.9M Cambodia Crypto Scam Laundering Case

Published Oct. 26, 2026. Case statuses are current as of that date.

A message from a stranger on social media or a dating app. A friendly conversation that turns to cryptocurrency. A slick trading website that shows your "investment" growing every week. Federal prosecutors say that is how 174 Americans were drawn into a scheme run out of scam centers in Cambodia, and on Oct. 23, 2026, one of the men they accuse of helping move the money appeared in a U.S. courtroom.

Zheng Zhao, 44, a Chinese national, was arraigned in the Central District of California after being extradited from the Netherlands, the Justice Department announced [1]. He was charged in August 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted [1].

Important: Zheng Zhao has been charged, not convicted. A charge is merely an allegation, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

How the scheme allegedly worked

According to court documents described by the Justice Department [1], the operation followed a pattern now familiar to investigators of so-called "pig butchering" scams:

1. First contact. Overseas co-conspirators reached U.S. victims through unsolicited social media interactions, phone calls, text messages and online dating services, then worked to gain their trust.
2. The pitch. Once trust was built, the co-conspirators promoted fraudulent digital asset investments.
3. The fake platform. They created websites that resembled real cryptocurrency trading platforms and persuaded victims to send money through them.
4. The illusion of profit. Victims were told their investments were growing in value. In fact, prosecutors say, the money had been stolen.
5. The laundering. Victim funds moved through U.S. shell companies, international bank accounts and digital asset wallets.

Prosecutors say more than $36.9 million in victim funds went from U.S. bank accounts controlled by the co-conspirators to a single account at Deltec Bank in the Bahamas. Zhao and others allegedly arranged for the bank to convert the funds to the stablecoin Tether (USDT) and send them to a digital asset wallet controlled in Cambodia. From there, co-conspirators in Cambodia allegedly transferred the USDT to the leaders of scam centers across the region [1]. The release does not accuse Deltec Bank or Tether of wrongdoing.

The government says it ultimately identified 174 U.S. victims. The release does not describe Zhao as one of the people who contacted victims directly; the charge against him is money laundering conspiracy.

The people charged and their status

Zheng Zhao, 44, Chinese national. Charged in August 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering. Arrested in the Netherlands and extradited with help from Dutch authorities and the Justice Department's Office of International Affairs. Arraigned Oct. 23, 2026, in the Central District of California. He has not been convicted [1].

The Justice Department says eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty so far. It names two:

• ShengSheng He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business and was sentenced to 51 months in prison [1].
• Jingliang Su pleaded guilty to the same charge and was sentenced to 46 months in prison [1].

The other six co-conspirators who pleaded guilty are not named in the release, so we do not name them here.

"This extradition should be a lesson to all those who seek to exploit vulnerable Americans from overseas," said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division [1].

"This case should serve as a warning to scammers in every corner of the world: there is nowhere to hide," said Special Agent in Charge Todd Bratz of the U.S. Secret Service Criminal Investigative Division [1].

The U.S. Secret Service's Global Investigative Operations Center is investigating, with help from Homeland Security Investigations, Customs and Border Protection, the State Department's Diplomatic Security Service and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is part of the Criminal Division's Cyber-Enabled Scam Initiative [1].

Red flags of a fake crypto investment platform

• The "investment advisor" found you. A wrong-number text, a dating match or a social media friend who brings up crypto is a classic opening.
• The platform is one you've never heard of, and the person coaching you insists you use it rather than a major, well-known exchange.
• Your balance only goes up. Steady, impressive gains on a dashboard prove nothing; scammers control what the website shows.
• Withdrawals get blocked or suddenly require "taxes," "fees" or a "minimum balance" first.
• Pressure to invest more before an opportunity "closes," or to keep the relationship and the investment secret.

What to do if you've been targeted

1. Stop sending money. No legitimate platform requires you to pay a fee to withdraw your own funds.
2. Save everything: chat logs, website addresses, wallet addresses, bank wire records and transaction IDs.
3. Report it to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov, as the Justice Department urges victims of digital asset investment fraud to do [1]. You can also report to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
4. Call your bank right away if you sent a wire or transfer recently. Fast action sometimes allows funds to be frozen.
5. Beware of "recovery" offers. People promising to get your crypto back for an upfront fee are often running a second scam.

Case status (as of Oct. 26, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status	Source
Zheng Zhao, 44, Chinese national	U.S. District Court, C.D. Cal.	Charged Aug. 2025 with conspiracy to commit money laundering; extradited from the Netherlands; arraigned Oct. 23, 2026; not convicted	[1]
ShengSheng He	Federal (per DOJ)	Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business; sentenced to 51 months	[1]
Jingliang Su	Federal (per DOJ)	Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business; sentenced to 46 months	[1]

Statuses can change. Sentencing dates for He and Su are not given in the release.

Sources

1. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, "Chinese National Extradited for Alleged Role in Multimillion-Dollar Cryptocurrency Scam Targeting U.S. Citizens," Press Release 26-1258, Oct. 23, 2026. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/chinese-national-extradited-alleged-role-multimillion-dollar-cryptocurrency-scam-targeting

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