California Man Gets 51 Months for Laundering $37M in Cambodia-Based Crypto Scam
California resident Shengsheng He obtained a 51-month federal jail sentence for laundering $36.9 million from victims in a global crypto funding rip-off operated from Cambodia-based facilities.
The court docket ordered $26.8 million in restitution for victims of the flowery scheme.
He, 39, of La Puente, pleaded responsible to conspiracy to function an unlicensed cash transmitting enterprise as a former co-owner of Bahamas-based Axis Digital Limited.
The legal community induced U.S. victims to switch funds via social media interactions, phone calls, and on-line relationship providers.
A Complex International Money Laundering Network
The conspiracy concerned abroad co-conspirators contacting American victims via unsolicited communications to realize belief earlier than selling fraudulent digital asset investments.
Scammers falsely instructed victims their investments have been appreciating whereas stealing the transferred funds.
According to the DOJ, over $36.9 million in sufferer funds flowed from U.S. financial institution accounts to a single Deltec Bank account in the Bahamas opened underneath Axis Digital Limited’s identify.
He and co-conspirators directed the financial institution to transform sufferer funds into Tether stablecoin and switch transformed funds to Cambodia-controlled digital wallets.
Cambodian co-conspirators then distributed USDT to rip-off middle leaders all through the area, together with operations in Sihanoukville.
The cash laundering infrastructure spanned a number of international locations whereas sustaining the looks of authentic enterprise operations.
Eight co-conspirators have pleaded responsible, together with Chinese nationwide Daren Li, in U.S. custody since April 2024, and Lu Zhang, who managed U.S.-based cash launderer networks. Both pleaded responsible to conspiracy to commit cash laundering costs.
He co-founded Axis Digital with Jose Somarriba, whereas Chinese nationwide Jingliang Su joined as director, collaborating in digital asset conversions.
Somarriba and Su every pleaded responsible to conspiracy costs for working unlicensed cash transmitting companies.
Escalating DOJ Crypto Crime Enforcement
The Justice Department has secured more and more extreme sentences for crypto-related crimes all through 2025.
In May, Alex Mashinsky, former Celsius CEO, received 12 years in prison for defrauding customers of $4.7 billion via fraudulent lending practices and token manipulation.
(*51*) had sought 20 years for Mashinsky, calling his actions “deliberate and calculated” relatively than market misjudgment.
He admitted to utilizing buyer deposits to pay promised yields whereas making dangerous, unsecured loans and falsely claiming monetary stability.
Similarly, in July, Nicholas Truglia saw his sentence increased from 18 months to 12 years after failing to pay $20.4 million in restitution from a $22 million crypto fraud scheme.
The choose criticized Truglia’s lavish life-style whereas owing victims substantial quantities.
That identical July, Rowland Marcus Andrade received seven years for wire fraud and cash laundering linked to AML Bitcoin, elevating $10 million via false guarantees about cryptocurrency capabilities.
He laundered over $2 million for private bills, together with Texas actual property and luxurious autos.
A crypto influencer has been sentenced to 1 yr and at some point in jail for orchestrating a cryptojacking scheme.#Scam #Cryptohttps://t.co/OfGtd5pd18
— Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) August 18, 2025
Most just lately, in an August 18 ruling, Charles Parks III, often known as “CP3O,” received one year for cryptojacking schemes that defrauded cloud computing suppliers of $3.5 million in assets.
He used pretend company identities to mine practically $1 million value of crypto utilizing stolen computing energy.
These enforcement patterns point out federal authorities are pursuing prolonged sentences for crypto crimes no matter scale.
Cases vary from million-dollar schemes to multi-billion-dollar platform collapses with constant emphasis on sufferer restitution.
Growing Threat of International Crypto Scams
Crypto fraud losses reached $2.2 billion in the first half of 2025, in line with CertiK safety studies.
Wallet breaches brought about $1.7 billion in losses throughout 34 incidents, whereas phishing scams accounted for $410 million throughout 132 assaults.
The Cambodia-based rip-off community focusing on American victims follows established patterns of worldwide legal organizations exploiting crypto’s cross-border capabilities.
U.S. Treasury sanctions 19 Myanmar, Cambodia entities for crypto scams that defrauded Americans of over $10B via compelled labor.#Crypto #Scamhttps://t.co/SanmDSbFAu
— Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) September 9, 2025
Recent Treasury sanctions against 19 Myanmar and Cambodia entities revealed the scope of compelled labor operations behind these scams.
In truth, the US Treasury talked about that the rip-off networks have defrauded Americans of over $10 billion in 2024 alone.
These legal organizations use debt bondage and violence to coerce victims into focusing on American residents, primarily via crypto fraud schemes.
The publish California Man Gets 51 Months for Laundering $37M in Cambodia-Based Crypto Scam appeared first on Cryptonews.
