Coordinated Takedown of Scam Centers Leads to at Least 276 Arrests; Alleged Managers and Recruiters Charged in San Diego

SAN DIEGO – Unprecedented cooperation between the FBI, Dubai Police Department, and Chinese Ministry of Public Security has resulted in the arrest of at least 276 individuals and the dismantlement of at least nine scam centers used for cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes. These centers targeted Americans who have suffered millions of dollars in losses from such schemes. This international crackdown last week was spearheaded by the Dubai Police, under the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Interior. Among the 275 arrested by Dubai authorities were three defendants charged in the Southern District of California with federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. An additional person was arrested by the Royal Thai Police. Thet Min Nyi (27, a Burmese national), Wiliang Awang (23, an Indonesian national), Andreas Chandra (29, an Indonesia national), Lisa Mariam (29, an Indonesian national), and two fugitive co-conspirators have been charged with federal fraud and money laundering charges unsealed in San Diego today. Dubai Police apprehended Thet Min Nyi, Chandra, and Mariam, while the Royal Thai Police apprehended Awang. “These scammers thought they were safe half a world away. But their world has changed. Global crime now faces global justice,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon for the Southern District of California. “Fraudsters who target Americans from overseas cannot operate with impunity, no matter where in the world they reside,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The charges and arrests announced today reflect an international consensus that scam centers are unwelcome everywhere and must be rooted out. Scam center organizers and fraudsters who defraud Americans and others will face justice in American courts and in courts around the world. In contemporary society, fraud is borderless, and law enforcement activity to combat it and eliminate it is as well.” “This operation demonstrates the FBI's steadfast commitment to preventing scammers from further defrauding the American people,” said Assistant Director Heith Janke of the FBI’s Criminal Division. “We can't do this work alone, and we are proud to coordinate and collaborate with our partners to hold accountable those who work to enable and facilitate these scams.” “Today’s indictment demonstrates the FBI’s determination to identify, disrupt, and dismantle these global scam centers defrauding Americans no matter where they set up shop,” said Mark Remily, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Diego Field Office. “FBI San Diego will continue to coordinate with our law enforcement, private sector, and international partners to protect victims from cryptocurrency fraud, stop losses before they happen, and recover victim funds where we can.” In 2025, FBI San Diego agents opened a Homeland Security Task Force investigation after identifying multiple companies and individuals managing scam compounds conducting cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes. According to the indictment, two criminal complaints, and other court records, the defendants charged in San Diego managed, worked for, and recruited others to work at three different “companies” that operated several alleged scam centers: “Ko Thet Company,” “Sanduo Group,” and “Giant Company.” All six defendants allegedly engaged in cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes through “pig-butchering,” which is a type of fraud where scammers gain a victim’s trust over time – through friendship or romance – before persuading them to send money to fake investments which the scammers then take. Scammers entice victims with phony friendship or romance before financially exploiting them. The defendants targeted citizens of the United States and other countries by cultivating trust and affection with the victims, based on the charging documents and court filings. After that, the scammers promoted investments in cryptocurrencies and assisted victims in setting up accounts and tran