FBI Joins Forces with Multiple Countries to Dismantle Cryptocurrency Scam Networks Involving Millions of Dollars

On April 30, Fox News reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies from Dubai, China, and Thailand, conducted a large-scale multinational enforcement operation that successfully dismantled at least nine overseas cryptocurrency scam centers, resulting in the arrest of 276 suspects and involving millions of dollars. During this operation, the U.S. Federal Court in San Diego filed federal telecommunications fraud and money laundering charges against six suspects, including individuals from Myanmar and Indonesia, who operated scam organizations under names such as ‘Sanduo Group’ and ‘Giant Company.’ The Dubai police arrested 275 suspects, while the Royal Thai Police apprehended one additional fugitive. These scam networks employed ‘pig butchering’ tactics, gaining victims’ trust through fabricated friendships or romantic relationships, leading them to transfer funds to fraudulent cryptocurrency investment platforms, which were then laundered and moved to criminal accounts. This operation aligns with the executive order signed by Trump on March 6, 2026, aimed at combating overseas criminal networks that exploit American citizens. The FBI’s ‘Operation Level Up’ has notified approximately 9,000 victims, recovering around $562 million in losses for U.S. citizens. The FBI urges victims to report incidents through the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).