US DOJ Charges 4 Individuals for Laundering Over $80M From Crypto Investment Scams
The United States Justice Department (DOJ) has charged four people for their alleged roles in laundering millions of dollars from cryptocurrency investment scams. According to a press release from the DOJ, the four individuals, Lu Zhang of Alhambra, California, Justin Walker of Cypress, California, Hailong Zhu of Naperville, Illinois, and Joseph Wong of Rosemead, California, aged 36, 31, 40, and 32, respectively, laundered more than $80 million worth of digital assets from different types of fraudulent crypto schemes. The seven-count indictment accused Zhang, Walker, Wong, and Zhu of conspiring to launder proceeds from crypto investment scams and fraudulent schemes like pig butchering. They moved the funds to local and international financial institutions through shell companies and bank accounts. While they may seem legit, the purported investment platforms are linked to scammer-controlled accounts. After the victims send their funds, the platforms are tweaked to look like they are making significant gains on the purported investments, inducing the targets to invest more money. The victims may be able to make small withdrawals at first, but with time, they will be unable to recover their money, leading to massive losses.
