"Teenage Crimes as Seed Money"...Who Is Chen Zhi, the Mastermind Behind Cambodia's Scam Empire?

Chairman Chen Zhi from Fujian Province, China
Born into an Ordinary Family
Began Committing Crimes in His Teenage Years

Chen Zhi (age 39), Chairman of Prince Group (Chinese name Taizijituan), who has been identified as the mastermind behind Cambodia's large-scale scam (online fraud) complexes, has been arrested and extradited to China. It has been reported that Chen was involved in cybercrime since his teenage years.

Chen Zhi, Chairman of Prince Group (Chinese name Taizijituan). Photo by Hong Seong Newspaper

On January 8, Yonhap News, citing reports from China’s Hongxing News, Hong Kong’s Sing Tao Daily, and Cambodia China Times, reported that Chen was born into an ordinary family in China and became involved in cybercrime during his adolescence. In his twenties, he moved to Cambodia and expanded his criminal organization.

Committed Cybercrimes Since His Teens

Chen was born in Xiaoao Town, Lianjiang County, Fujian Province, in southeastern China, into a relatively ordinary family. However, after dropping out of middle school, he spent his teenage years engaging in cybercrimes, such as online gaming scams. After leaving his hometown, he started working at an internet cafe, gathering peers and making money through cyberattacks, operating illegal gaming servers, and trading user information. The money he earned during this time became the seed capital for building his criminal organization.

It is reported that Chen moved to Cambodia in 2009. He initially started a real estate business, acquiring land from local officials at low prices and hiring Chinese workers to build apartments, which he then rented out to Chinese expatriates.

A view of the bank operated by Prince Group, known as the mastermind behind organized crimes including the operation of the 'Prince Complex,' which was considered the largest crime complex in Cambodia. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Founded Prince Group in 2015...Criminal Activities Escalated

After acquiring Cambodian citizenship in 2014, he established Prince Group in 2015. Prince Group subsequently intensified its criminal activities targeting various countries, including South Korea.

Publicly, Chen promoted himself as "investing in Cambodia's future," expanding his business beyond real estate into finance, tourism, and casinos, operating in more than 30 countries. Hongxing News reported, "Chen systematically built a transnational criminal organization in Cambodia under the guise of real estate development. He lured workers with promises of high-paying jobs, then illegally detained them in complexes such as those in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, and forced them to participate in online scams."

The view of Taeja Complex, known as a crime zone operated by Prince Group near Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Photo by Yonhap News

However, as the number of victims increased, the United States and United Kingdom placed Prince Group and Chen under sanctions in October of last year. The United States indicted Chen for authorizing violence against workers, instructing bribes to foreign officials, and laundering illegal profits through online gambling and cryptocurrency mining. The U.S. government confiscated approximately $15 billion (21.741 trillion won) worth of Bitcoin linked to Chen and his businesses. Other assets in the United Kingdom, Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong were also seized.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice indictment, Chen operated at least ten scam complexes across Cambodia. The U.S. Department of Justice estimated that the Prince Group’s criminal complexes employed between 5,000 and 10,000 staff, with over 700,000 fraudulent accounts. In just two facilities, 1,250 mobile phones were used to manage 76,000 social media accounts.

At these scam complexes, people from not only Cambodia but also China, South Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asian countries came seeking jobs, only to become involved in further scams under violence and threats, thus creating new victims.

Chen was arrested in Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, on January 6, about three months after the U.S. and U.K. sanctions, and was extradited to China along with other Chinese nationals such as Xu Jiliang and Xiao Jihu.

Chen Zhi Extradited to China...“No One Who Breaks the Law Can Escape Sanctions” as Cambodia Distances Itself

Prince Group is suspected of expanding its business in Cambodia under the protection of the long-ruling Hun Sen family. In Cambodia, there was even a saying, "Even if a coin falls from the sky, it belongs to Prince Group." Hongxing News reported, "In July 2020, Chen was awarded the royal title 'Neak Oknha' by the Cambodian royal family and served as a special economic advisor to the Prime Minister of Cambodia."

However, as Western sanctions intensified, Cambodian authorities also began to distance themselves. In December of last year, Cambodia’s Ministry of Interior revoked Chen’s Cambodian citizenship.

On January 7 (local time), a spokesperson for Senate President Hun Sen stated, "No one who breaks the law can escape legal sanctions, regardless of their status, position, or job." He added, "Some individuals have tried to use the names of national leaders, especially the ruling party chairman and the Prime Minister, as a shield to conceal illegal activities and infringe on the interests of the people. These are precisely the individuals the ruling party must resolutely address and eliminate."