The US Department of Justice has just astonished the crypto world by executing the largest seizure in its history: approximately 127,271 Bitcoins, valued at nearly $15 billion, are now tightly secured under government control. This record-breaking operation, which resembles a spy thriller, is linked to the dramatic case of Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi, who, according to investigators, built a cyber-empire fueled by forced labour camps and large-scale cryptocurrency fraud.
Chen Zhi and his Prince Holding Group — wrapped in a façade of real estate and financial services — allegedly operated hundreds of fake call centers. Victims were pushed into “pig butchering” scams: they were lured into trust-based relationships and then “slaughtered” financially through fake crypto investment schemes. The prosecution claims these operations took place in prison-like conditions surrounded by barbed wire, where people were coerced into running scams. Chen personally approved of violent tactics that stopped just short of lethal, all in the name of “business done the hard way.”
The stolen Bitcoins were laundered with extreme precision. Scattered across hundreds of wallets and re-consolidated, they were designed to vanish from view. The ill-gotten gains were spent on private jets, luxury yachts, and even a Pablo Picasso painting. Now, the entire cryptocurrency stash is eligible for forfeiture, while Chen himself is on the run, facing up to 40 years behind bars.
Ironically, in March 2025, Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing a national Bitcoin reserve comprised of seized crypto assets. With this latest haul, the total reserve value has surged to an eye-popping $37 billion. This amount is hard to surpass, even by a crypto wizard like Satoshi Nakamoto.
