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Chinese citizen Daren Li has confessed to laundering over $73 million from victims of cryptocurrency investment scams known as “pig butchering.” These scams are operated by firms tied to organized crime in Southeast Asia. Li used shell companies and international bank accounts to launder the money, then converted the funds into Tether’s USDT stablecoin and sent to controlled crypto wallets. Some of these proceeds were even found in Deltec Bank’s accounts in the Bahamas. A court date is set for March 3, where Li could face a maximum sentence of 20 years. Losses from these scams reached $4.5 billion in 2023.

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Daren Li, a Chinese citizen, has admitted to laundering millions of dollars from victims of cryptocurrency investment scams. The operation, known as “pig butchering,” has seen con artists fooling victims into investing into a crypto scheme. The fraudsters often pretend to have inside knowledge about a sure-win investment. At first, victims can withdraw their investment, making them believe everything is above board and encouraging them to invest larger amounts, after which withdrawals become frozen.

This scam is operated by companies with links to organized crime, especially in Southeast Asia. Myanmar and Cambodia are believed to be home to around 220,000 people involved in these scams. Some of these people have been trafficked into the region under the false promise of legitimate employment, according to the United Nations.

Li laundered over $73 million from victims using a network of shell companies and international bank accounts. He is now set to be sentenced on March 3 and could face a maximum of 20 years in prison. Losses from this type of crypto investment scams reached $4.5 billion in 2023, according to the FBI.

The money laundered from victims was wired into US bank accounts set up on behalf of shell companies. The funds were then converted into virtual currency, specifically Tether’s USDT stablecoin, and distributed to crypto wallets that Li and his co-conspirators controlled. Some of these proceeds ended up in Deltec Bank’s accounts in the Bahamas. The bank’s authorities seized over $58 million in funds related to international money laundering, wire and bank fraud. A representative for Deltec Bank denied any wrongdoing by the bank.