U.S., UAE and China Target Crypto Scams; Nine Centers Shut, 276 Arrested
“Pig-butchering” scams build trust through friendship or romance before inducing victims to transfer cryptocurrency to fraudulent investment platforms, where the funds are laundered. The FBI has run Operation Level Up since 2024 and, as of April 2026, had notified nearly 9,000 victims and was estimated to have prevented $562 million in losses, underscoring the importance of cross-border enforcement.
The U.S. Department of Justice said on April 29, 2026, that the FBI, Dubai Police and China’s Ministry of Public Security had worked together to dismantle at least nine scam centers during the previous week. Dubai arrested 275 people, while the Royal Thai Police arrested one more. Four of those arrested face wire fraud or money laundering charges in the Southern District of California, carrying maximum prison terms of 20 years and maximum fines of $250,000 and $500,000, respectively.
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The history behind this eventUS, UK Form Joint Alliance to Dismantle Crypto Scam Centers
Crypto-enabled investment scam centers, concentrated in Southeast Asia and often tied to Chinese organized crime networks, use fake platforms and social engineering to steal funds while relying on trafficking and money-laundering infrastructure. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro launched the Scam Center Strike Force in November 2025 to coordinate federal action. U.S. authorities estimate the schemes cost Americans about $10 billion annually, while FBI-reported crypto investment fraud losses rose 89% to $8.65 billion in 2025 from $4.57 billion in 2023.
On Sept. 3, 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Crown Prosecution Service of England and Wales and the UK National Crime Agency signed what the Justice Department called a first-of-its-kind memorandum of understanding focused on dismantling scam centers. The agencies will pursue parallel investigations, exchange intelligence on organized crime groups and decide which jurisdictions should bring cases. They have identified overlapping investigations and plan an in-person disruption operation with private-sector partners in London in early October, hosted by the National Crime Agency.
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