Cambodia shuts over 700 cyberscam locations over past year, government says

Cambodia has taken significant action to combat online scams, closing over 700 compounds and deporting 58,266 foreign nationals in the past year, according to a government statement released on Friday. The Southeast Asian nation has become a hotspot for crime syndicates running fake romantic relationship and cryptocurrency investment schemes, with scammers, some willingly and others trafficked, defrauding internet users worldwide.

Under pressure from countries like the US and China, Cambodian authorities have intensified their crackdown on this criminal activity.

Since the beginning of the year, nearly 30,000 suspects have been arrested, including 15 high-ranking officials and law enforcement officers. Over 3,400 suspects from 29 nationalities, such as China, Vietnam, Australia, France, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Thailand, are currently in custody and awaiting trial. While large-scale sites have been entirely dismantled, criminal groups have adapted their tactics, shifting to decentralized and small-scale operations, hiding in guesthouses, condominiums, rental houses, vehicles, and even coffee shops.

Notable extraditions include Chinese-born Chen Zhi, the chairman of the multi-billion-dollar Cambodian conglomerate Prince Holding Group, and Li Xiong, the former chairman of Huione Group. Chen was extradited to China in January after facing sanctions from the US and UK, while Li was sent to China in April, with Beijing accusing him of being a key figure in a major transnational gambling and fraud syndicate.