BlockBeats news: On January 8, footage was released showing Chen Zhi of the Prince Group being escorted back to China. On January 7, a working group dispatched by China's Ministry of Public Security successfully repatriated Chen Zhi (a Chinese national and leader of a major transnational gambling and fraud criminal group) from Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
According to the investigation, the Chen Zhi criminal gang is suspected of multiple crimes, including operating an illegal gambling den, fraud, illegal business operations, and concealing or disguising the proceeds of crime. At present, Chen Zhi has been legally subjected to coercive measures, and the related cases are under further investigation. A responsible official from the Ministry of Public Security of China stated that public security organs will issue a public wanted notice for the first batch of key members of the Chen Zhi criminal gang in the near future, and will resolutely apprehend fugitives and bring them to justice.
Chen Zhi, the founder of the Cambodian transnational telecom fraud group "Prince Group," was born on December 16, 1987, in Lianjiang County, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, China. He dropped out of school after completing the second year of junior high school and previously worked in internet-related jobs in China. In 2011, he went to Cambodia to invest in real estate. In 2014, he obtained Cambodian citizenship through investment immigration (later renouncing his Chinese nationality). In 2015, he established the Prince Holding Group (commonly known as the Prince Group), which is suspected of operating a large transnational fraud organization. In mid-October 2025, the United States and the United Kingdom announced charges against Chen Zhi and seized approximately $15 billion worth of Bitcoin he held.