3 S'poreans sanctioned by US for alleged links to Cambodian scam syndicate

Three Singaporeans have been sanctioned by the U.S. for their alleged links to a transnational Cambodian scam syndicate, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control announced on Oct. 14.

The individuals are Chen Xiuling (who also goes by Karen Chen), 43, Nigel Tang Wan Bao Nabil, 32, and Alan Yeo Sin Huat, 53.

They are suspected of acting in various capacities for mastermind Chen Zhi, a Cambodian national who heads Prince Holding Group, a U.S.-designated transnational criminal organisation allegedly behind scam losses amounting to billions.

17 Singapore-registered companies were also added to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.

Operational involvement

According to the U.S. Treasury, Prince Holding Group is a multinational conglomerate headquartered in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

On its website, it states that its core areas of business are estate development, financial services and consumer services.

It also purports to have several developments in Phnom Penh, including mixed-use properties and a hotel, and to hand out scholarships to local students.

These, however, are just fronts for a "laundry list of transnational crimes including the construction, operation and management of scam compounds reliant on human trafficking and modern-day slavery", targeting victims around the world, the U.S. Treasury alleged.

Prince Holding Group's CEO, Chen Zhi, and his close associates and business partners all operate in support of this criminal enterprise, the U.S. Treasury claimed.

Karen Chen Xiuling, 43

One of the Singaporeans, Karen Chen Xiuling, 43, oversees Prince Holding Group's companies based in Mauritius, Taiwan and Singapore, the U.S. Treasury said.

She is listed in corporate documents as the ultimate owner of numerous companies controlled by Prince Group that share the same Singapore address and include the holding company which managed Chen Zhi's luxury yacht.

Local regulatory filings showed that she is a director, company secretary, or both, in all 17 Singapore-registered companies targeted by the sanctions, The Business Times (BT) reported.

One of the 17 companies is DW Capital Holdings, whose website describes the 43-year-old as its Chief Finance Officer and Chen Zhi is its founder and chair.

According to a blurb, Chen is a "chartered accountant of Singapore" and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance in 2005 from the University of London's programme at the Singapore Institute of Management.

It also claims that Chen has more than 10 years of combined experience at agencies like PWC and Moore Stephens.

BT added that Chen is also listed as a director of Warpcapital Yacht Management, Cloud Xero Management and Capital Zone Warehousing.

DW Capital and Capital Zone Warehousing are among the two firms linked to Chen, which share the same address at 2 Jalan Kilang Birat.

DW Capital is listed as occupying unit #08-01, while Capital Zone Warehousing is listed as occupying unit #07-01.

She was recently appointed as a non-executive director of 17Live Group, which operates a live-streaming platform.

17Live is not among the 17 sanctioned companies and has since denied any business dealings with Chen, The Edge reported.

According to BT, she has voluntarily resigned from 17Live.

Nigel Tang Wan Bao Nabil, 32

While the U.S. Treasury did not specify Tang's involvement in Prince Holding Group, checks by BT revealed that Tang is also involved in Warpcapital Yacht Management, Cloud Xero Management and Capital Zone Warehousing, as Chen was.

He is the head of operations at Capital Zone Warehousing, which supposedly offers storage solutions for luxury goods like fine teas, cigars, wines and whiskies.

He is the sole director of a luxury yacht brokering and management company, Quantum Yacht Asia and a partner of food business, Lauuk House, BT wrote.

Alan Yeo Sin Huat, 53

The third Singaporean on the sanctions list, Yeo, is accused by the U.S. Treasury of serving as a financial assistant and wealth manager to Chen Zhi, the head of Prince Holding Group.

He allegedly coordinated large wire transfers, corresponded with banks, managed accounts, and worked to obfuscate Prince Holding Group's corrupt and criminal activities.

According to BT, Yeo holds passports from Singapore and China.

US$15 billion (S$19 billion) in Bitcoins seized

In total, 128 entities linked to Chen Zhi, his associates or Prince Holding Group were added to the SDN list.

Persons or entities listed on the SDN list will have their assets blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them.

Chen Zhi moved to Cambodia from China and has since cultivated a network of over 100 shell and holding companies around the world, according to the U.S. Treasury.

He is described on the DW Capital website as a "young business prodigy" whose first businesses are internet cafés and gaming centres in Fuzhou, China.

He ventured to Cambodia in 2011 to dabble in real estate and started Prince Real Estate in 2015.

The Prince Holding Group network allows him to "comingle illicit revenues with the legitimate Cambodian economy", the U.S. Treasury said.

The organisation participates in a litany of transnational crimes, including sextortion, pig butchering schemes, money laundering, illegal gambling, and the operation of at least ten scam compounds in Cambodia.

It uses criminal revenues to support its "ostensibly legitimate" business ventures.

As part of its takedown action, the U.S. also seized more than S$15 billion (S$18 billion) worth of Bitcoins from the organisation, its Department of Justice said.

It has also formally charged Chen Zhi, who remains at large.

Previously, Prince Holding Group had denied and rebutted allegations of criminality, BT reported.

Top image via Prince Holding Group, U.S. Treasury