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.

This international crackdown 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.

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 transferring cryptocurrency to investment platforms that, unbeknownst to the victims, were false.

The alleged scammers touted their own successes and returns in cryptocurrency investments and encouraged their victims to invest more. They also encouraged their victims to borrow money from friends and family and take out loans, to be able to “invest” more. Unbeknownst to the victims, once they made transfers to the platforms the alleged scammers suggested, they lost control of their cryptocurrency. Fake platforms put the victims’ funds in the hands of the scammers, who then laundered the victims’ funds to other cryptocurrency accounts, including their own.

FBI agents have identified numerous victims around the United States through complaints filed with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Agents interviewed victims and analyzed financial and cryptocurrency records. So far, investigators have identified millions of dollars in losses caused by these cryptocurrency investment schemes operating across jurisdictions.

Thet Min Nyi, an alleged manager and recruiter for the Ko Thet Company, also called “Pixy,” managed scam compounds. In March 2026, a grand jury in the Southern District of California returned an indictment against Thet Min Nyi and a fugitive co-defendant charging them with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy, along with criminal forfeiture allegations.

Further, in April 2026, two criminal complaints in the Southern District of California charged Awang, Chandra, their fugitive co-defendant, and Mariam with wire fraud conspiracy. These charges were based on cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes from two other alleged scam organizations, Sanduo Group and Giant Company.

The Dubai Police Department, under the UAE Ministry of Interior, significantly disrupted the scam operations through their parallel investigation. The Dubai Police continue to collaborate closely with international law enforcement agencies to identify and dismantle transnational criminal networks, as part of Dubai’s commitment to combating financial crime and protecting victims worldwide.

Thailand’s Royal Thai Police’s (RTP) Immigration Bureau, Foreign Affairs, and Anti Cyber Scam Center provided significant assistance. Through RTP’s efforts, a key subject and defendant in this investigation, Awang, was apprehended in Thailand.

Meta Platforms, Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, provided critical information for this investigation.

FBI San Diego has investigated a number of other sophisticated cryptocurrency investment frauds. For example, Operation Level Up —which began in 2024 as a San Diego and Phoenix joint initiative — has proactively identified and notified victims of cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes. As of April 2026, the FBI notified almost 9,000 victims and saved victims an estimated $562 million. FBI-San Diego is also investigating the Tai Chang Scam Enterprise, a series of scam compounds located in Burma’s Karen State also conducting cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes against Americans.

If you have been defrauded out of your money by this type of scheme, please contact the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.