The United States and United Kingdom have signed a memorandum of understanding to combat scam centers that are responsible for billions of dollars in fraud, particularly through investment and romance scams. This initiative aims to dismantle organized crime syndicates, many of which operate from Southeast Asia.
On Thursday, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro met with senior officials from the U.K.’s National Crime Agency and Crown Prosecutor to formalize the agreement. Pirro emphasized the goal of the initiative is to “disable” the Chinese gangs that manage these scam operations.
As part of the agreement, both nations will collaborate on investigations and share intelligence regarding cases of mutual interest. They have already identified significant overlaps in their cases and plan to hold an in-person disruption event with private industry partners in London in early October, according to the Justice Department.
The initiative is spearheaded by the Scam Center Strike Force, which was launched in November to coordinate U.S. law enforcement efforts against cyber scams. The FBI has reported that cyber-enabled fraud schemes accounted for nearly 85% of all losses reported to the agency, with over $12 billion stolen from Americans last year alone. This figure is believed to be an undercount, as many victims do not report their losses.
These scams are often perpetrated by human trafficking victims who are housed in compounds across Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and other countries, with Chinese gangs operating these facilities with the assistance of compromised local officials. The Scam Center Strike Force, led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Seifert, comprises over 150 personnel, including prosecutors and agents from the FBI, IRS, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
One of the Strike Force’s notable successes was the disruption of the Prince Group, a Chinese front company used to launder money obtained through these scams. Both U.S. and U.K. agencies have imposed sanctions on the Prince Group, and the Justice Department has seized approximately $15 billion worth of bitcoin linked to the company’s CEO, Chen Zhi.
For more details, refer to the original report by The Record.
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