In what officials are calling the largest cryptocurrency forfeiture in U.S. history, the FBI has seized approximately $8 billion (potentially worth up to $15 billion at the time of seizure) in crypto as part of a sweeping international operation targeting organized scam compounds.

Operation Blackout: A Global Takedown

The operation, known as Operation Blackout, involved coordinated raids across multiple countries including Cambodia, Thailand, Dubai (UAE), and Myanmar. The FBI, working with international partners, dismantled several large-scale “scam compounds” — fortified facilities run by organized crime groups that used human trafficking and forced labor to carry out cryptocurrency investment scams, romance scams, and other fraud schemes targeting Americans.

Key highlights of the operation:

• 127,000 Bitcoin seized from Chen Zhi, CEO of Cambodia’s Prince Holding Group (linked to the “Democratic Karen Benevolent Army”).
• Nearly 300 arrests worldwide.
• Nearly 2,000 trafficked workers freed from scam compounds.
• Thousands of smartphones and electronic devices seized in raids (as seen in the images).

The Human Cost of Scam Compounds

These operations were not simple call centers. Many relied on trafficked individuals lured with fake job promises, then forced to run scams under threat of violence. The groups have been blamed for billions in losses to American victims, including one case where a single U.S. citizen lost $3 million.

FBI Director Kash Patel stated:

“Scam compounds are not just call centers. They are organized criminal enterprises built to steal from Americans, launder money, and exploit people at scale.”

Additional Actions

• Partnership with Starlink (Elon Musk’s company) to suspend over 7,000 terminals allegedly used by scammers in Myanmar.
• Operation Level Up, which proactively warned nearly 9,000 victims, preventing over $562 million in additional losses.

This record-breaking seizure marks a major victory in the fight against transnational cyber-enabled fraud. Investigations and additional operations against similar networks are ongoing.

The massive haul of seized phones and devices underscores the industrial scale of these criminal enterprises — and the FBI’s determination to dismantle them.