Ringleader of Massive $73M Crypto Fraud Receives 20-Year Sentence - Crypto Economy

TL;DR

• A US federal court sentenced fugitive Daren Li to 20 years for leading a $73M crypto “pig butchering” conspiracy run from scam centers in Cambodia.
• Prosecutors said the group used spoofed trading websites and relationships built via social media and dating services to persuade victims to transfer funds.
• DOJ said at least $73.6M in victim funds hit conspirator-linked accounts, including $59.8M through US shell companies used to launder proceeds into crypto.

Daren Li, a dual national of China and St. Kitts and Nevis, was sentenced in absentia to 20 years in US federal prison for his role in an international cryptocurrency investment conspiracy that stole more than $73 million from victims, many of them American investors. The maximum sentence signals authorities see “pig butchering” as organized financial crime with real-world victims, not a fringe online scheme. Prosecutors said Li is a fugitive after cutting off his electronic ankle monitor and fleeing in December 2025, and the court also imposed three years of supervised release.

How the scam worked and why the crackdown is widening

Prosecutors said Li and co-conspirators operated from scam centers in Cambodia and used spoofed domains and websites designed to resemble legitimate cryptocurrency trading platforms. They initiated contact through unsolicited social-media interactions and online dating services, then built professional or romantic relationships to gain trust before persuading targets to transfer funds. The scheme’s durability came from pairing relationship-driven persuasion with credible-looking “platform” infrastructure that normalized repeated deposits. Victims were directed into financial accounts controlled by the group, which prosecutors said were used to process the inflows.


The Justice Department described multiple variants of the operation. In some cases, victims were pitched direct “investment” opportunities through the spoofed platforms. In other iterations, scammers claimed to be from customer service or technology support companies and induced victims to send money to remediate a non-existent virus or other fabricated computer problem. The financial backbone was the laundering workflow, converting victim wires into virtual currency through shell-company accounts and controlled transfers. Li admitted the conspiracy caused at least $73.6 million in victim funds to be deposited into bank accounts associated with the defendants and co-conspirators, including at least $59.8 million routed through US shell companies that laundered proceeds.

The sentencing is the first in the case for a defendant directly tied to the ultimate receipt of victim funds, while eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The enforcement message is expanding from stopping the scammers who make contact to dismantling the facilitators who move money and keep the machinery running. Investigators include the US Secret Service Global Investigative Operations Center, with support from Homeland Security Investigations task forces, Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center, the US Marshals Service, and other partners involved in tracing funds, seizing assets, and disrupting infrastructure.