Chinese man extradited for role in $36 million cryptocurrency scam

A Chinese national was arraigned in California after being extradited from the Netherlands for his alleged involvement in a cryptocurrency investment scam that stole nearly $37 million from 174 victims in the United States.

In these fraud schemes (also known as pig butchering or romance baiting scams), cybercriminals contact targets through social media, dating sites, and messaging apps, build trust, and lure them into fake investment schemes, stealing their money instead of investing the funds as promised.

Prosecutors said that, together with accomplices in the United States and Cambodia, 44-year-old Zhen Zhao tricked victims into transferring large sums of money to attacker-controlled accounts, claiming that the funds would be invested in digital assets.

The criminal ring Zhao was allegedly part of reached out to targets across the United States via unsolicited text messages, social media, phone calls, and even online dating services to gain their trust, promoting the fraudulent digital asset investments and saying that the victims' funds' value increased, when, in fact, their money was stolen.