Online scam hubs Madagascar smashed with US help: Department of Justice
US says it helped crack Madagascar online scam centers
US authorities dismantled online scam networks operating in Madagascar, with significant assistance from the United States. The Department of Justice (DOJ) established a specialized unit to combat cryptocurrency-based scam rings in Southeast Asia, which were tied to presumed Chinese criminal organizations. Last year, this unit targeted the Xinbi Guarantee marketplace, a Telegram-based scam platform with over 650,000 users, seizing $52 million in cryptocurrency.
Jeanne Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, emphasized that the scam networks have expanded beyond Southeast Asia, now operating in hubs across Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Central America. The DOJ has previously taken down Chinese scam networks targeting Americans with retirement accounts. Over the past two weeks, US investigators conducted operations in Madagascar, arresting 500 scammers and leading to the extradition of 50 Chinese nationals convicted of online scam crimes.
Madagascar's justice ministry reported that these individuals would serve prison sentences in China, ranging from two to 10 years. The Chinese embassy in Madagascar acknowledged the extradition and praised the judicial cooperation between the two nations. Online scams, particularly those using forced labor, are estimated to generate $40 billion annually, with $12 billion coming from victims in the United States.
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