Overview
- The FBI-led operation, announced Wednesday, resulted in 276 arrests and the closure of at least nine overseas scam centers tied to fake crypto investment platforms.
- Dubai Police made 275 arrests, while Thai authorities detained one suspect, in a joint push with the FBI and China’s Ministry of Public Security.
- U.S. prosecutors in San Diego unsealed wire fraud and money laundering cases against six people, naming Thet Min Nyi, Wiliang Awang, Andreas Chandra, and Lisa Mariam.
- The schemes used “pig-butchering” tactics that build online trust through romance or friendship before steering victims to bogus trading sites that seize their deposits.
- FBI victim outreach under Operation Level Up has alerted nearly 9,000 people and is credited with preventing about $562 million in losses, with investigators still tracing stolen funds.