The Justice Department has seized roughly $15 billion worth of bitcoin from a massive international fraud operation based in Cambodia. The group behind it allegedly used slave labor to run the scam.

According to CNBC, the investigation marks the largest cryptocurrency forfeiture in U.S. history. The operation was run by Chen Zhi, a Chinese-born businessman known as “Vincent,” who prosecutors say used a multinational conglomerate as cover for one of the world’s most sophisticated financial crimes.

Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn have charged Zhi with wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. He faces up to 40 years in prison if convicted.

Authorities say Zhi, 38, is the founder and chairman of the Prince Holding Group — a sprawling business empire based in Cambodia that secretly operated 10 scam compounds across the country.

Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella said Zhi “directed one of the largest investment fraud operations in history, fueling an illicit industry that is reaching epidemic proportions.”

The scam, known as a “pig butchering” scheme, relied on social media and dating platforms to lure victims — many of them Americans — into fake cryptocurrency investments.

Victims were first encouraged to invest small amounts and allowed to make limited withdrawals, creating the illusion of legitimacy. Once larger deposits were made, the scammers locked accounts and demanded more payments under false pretenses.

The scam’s name comes from the process of “fattening up” victims before “butchering” them — draining their savings completely.

Court filings show that the Prince Group’s criminal network trafficked hundreds of people into Cambodia and forced them to run these scams under the threat of violence. Victims of the trafficking operation were held inside guarded compounds, with many reporting beatings and torture if they refused to participate.

The DOJ said billions of dollars were stolen from investors across multiple countries and funneled through cryptocurrency accounts controlled by the Prince Group. The money was then laundered through shell companies and converted into assets benefiting Zhi and his partners.

Prosecutors say Zhi and his top executives used political influence in several countries to shield their criminal activities. The network allegedly paid bribes to public officials to avoid police interference and keep the operation running.

In a coordinated action, the U.S. Treasury Department designated the Prince Group as a transnational criminal organization. More than 100 individuals and entities linked to the group were sanctioned for their roles in the crimes.

“The Prince Group’s empire of fraud and human suffering stretched across continents,” one official familiar with the case said. “What’s been uncovered is a perfect example of how organized crime has moved into the digital world — and how far they’re willing to go to exploit it.”

Investigators say many of the people forced into the scam were lured from other Asian nations with fake job offers. Once they arrived in Cambodia, their passports were taken and they were trapped inside guarded facilities surrounded by barbed wire.

The Justice Department confirmed that the $15 billion in bitcoin seized from Zhi’s network will eventually be used to repay victims where possible.

For now, the alleged mastermind remains at large. But U.S. officials say they’re working with international partners to track him down and dismantle what’s left of the criminal empire he built.