U.S. Treasury Moves Against Politically Connected Cambodian Scam Empire
The United States Treasury Department sanctioned Cambodian senator Kok An on Thursday, targeting him alongside 28 other individuals connected to his scam center operation. The action marks one of the most significant U.S. enforcement moves yet against the entrenched network of fraud compounds operating across Southeast Asia.
According to Treasury officials, criminal operators within Kok An's network have stolen millions of dollars from U.S. victims while shielding themselves behind his political connections. The facilities — many of them casinos and office parks retrofitted for fraudulent purposes — allegedly serve as bases for laundering victim funds and targeting American citizens, all while committing human rights abuses with impunity.
Who Is Kok An?
Kok An is a longtime politically connected businessman in Southeast Asia whose ties to former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and current leader Hun Manet have helped him build a sprawling empire of casinos, hotels, and commercial ventures over several decades. His flagship business, Crown Resorts, owns casinos, resorts, and hotels across Cambodian border cities including Poipet, Sihanoukville, and Bavet.
U.S. officials say those properties have been converted into facilities used by criminal organizations for digital asset investment fraud and other scams. Kok An reportedly collects rental income from the scam operators and supplies additional services such as uniformed security personnel.
Thursday's sanctions follow Thailand's issuance of an arrest warrant for Kok An last July and a series of raids on dozens of his properties in towns along the Cambodia-Thailand border. Thai police seized assets valued at more than $33.8 million, according to the Bangkok Post.
Human Trafficking and Forced Fraud
The Treasury Department's action paints a disturbing picture of conditions inside the compounds. Victims of human trafficking brought to these facilities have reportedly described themselves and thousands of others being forced to defraud scam victims — including Americans — in order to repay their abductors for the costs of being kidnapped.
The sanctions also reference a State Department report documenting that trafficking victims at Kok An-controlled properties were beaten if they failed to contact a minimum number of scam victims each day. U.S. officials said that nearly all major scam compounds in Cambodia have ties to casinos, most of which launder the proceeds generated by the fraud operations.
Associates Named in the Sanctions
The Treasury Department cast a wide net, naming several of Kok An's business associates in the sanctions package:
- Rithy Raksmei, owner of K99 Group, allegedly operates multiple casinos that have housed trafficking victims since as far back as 2019. His brother is married to one of Kok An's daughters. His properties have reportedly been the sites of unlawful detentions, beatings, and deaths.
- Aik Paung and Sai Aung Linn, both Burmese nationals, were also named.
- Luo Hong, a Cambodian casino owner, allegedly facilitated the transfer of scam proceeds from U.S. bank accounts to overseas accounts. At least $1.3 million was traced to accounts in his name.
- Heng Feng Cambodia, a bank, was included in the designations.
The Secret Service found that victims were deceived into believing they were making legitimate cryptocurrency investments. Those funds were funneled through U.S.-based intermediaries who then transferred the money to bank accounts in Cambodia.
U.S. Guilty Pleas and the Case of Daren Li
Eight U.S. residents have pleaded guilty in connection with the scheme. Among them is money launderer Daren Li, who entered a plea agreement stating that $73.6 million in victim funds were deposited into bank accounts controlled by his team before being moved elsewhere. Despite his plea, Li cut off his ankle monitor and fled the United States in December. He was ultimately sentenced to 20 years in prison in February, and the State Department has posted a $4 million reward for information related to him.
Scam Center Strike Force Actions
Thursday's sanctions were launched in coordination with the Scam Center Strike Force, a Department of Justice-led initiative designed to unify law enforcement responses to digital fraud. The DOJ reports that more than $16 billion was stolen from U.S. citizens last year through scams tied to fake investments or romantic relationships.
As part of the same operation, authorities announced:
- The seizure of 503 web domains used to give fraudulent cryptocurrency investment companies a veneer of legitimacy.
- Federal wire fraud charges against two Chinese nationals, Huang Xingshan and Jiang Wen Jie, for allegedly running cryptocurrency investment fraud operations at the Shunda compound in Min Let Pan, Myanmar. The compound was shuttered in November. The two men fled to Cambodia after the closure but were arrested in Thailand in January while reportedly preparing to open a new scam compound in Myanmar.
- The shutdown of a Telegram channel called "Pogo Job Hiring", which had more than 6,000 members and posted recruitment ads targeting people willing to work nights and those with American accents, ostensibly for jobs in Cambodia.
Raids on the Shunda compound uncovered evidence that workers there had posed as bank employees or U.S. law enforcement officers, calling victims with urgent demands for payment.
Broader Context: A $44 Billion Regional Industry
The scam center economy across Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos has generated an estimated $44 billion, according to U.S. agencies. Human rights organizations and the State Department believe there are hundreds of active scam centers in Cambodia alone.
The Treasury Department previously sanctioned another Cambodian senator and billionaire, Ly Yong Phat, in 2024 for owning hotels, resorts, and casinos that house cyber scam operations. One of Kok An's daughters is married to one of Ly Yong Phat's sons, highlighting the familial ties between the two sanctioned figures.
In a striking irony, both Kok An and Ly Yong Phat voted just two weeks ago in favor of a new Cambodian law imposing harsh sentences on scam center operators and workers.
The State Department has also posted a separate $10 million reward for information related to another scam compound sanctioned last year.
Scale of Victim Impact
As of March 2026, the FBI and partner agencies reported notifying 8,935 victims of cryptocurrency investment fraud since launching targeted efforts in January 2024. The human toll documented by the DOJ is severe:
"Some victims have reported to law enforcement that — prior to being notified by the FBI about the scam — they were in the process of liquidating their 401K, selling their home, or obtaining a sizable loan. One elderly victim was surviving on disability pay; he had already paid the scammers $1,200 and would have cut into money he needed for food to pay more."
Each of the 503 seized .com domains was identified through Operation Level Up as having been involved in laundering a specific victim's cryptocurrency funds.
Executive and Diplomatic Dimensions
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March directing the U.S. government to take stronger action against Southeast Asian scam center operations. However, a U.S. official warned last month that despite recent enforcement progress, China has tacitly supported the continuation of scam compound networks so long as Chinese citizens are not among those targeted.
Source: The Record