Key Takeaways
- Hu Shi of Prince Group was arrested on June 14, further tightening global enforcement against pig butchering rings.
- In 2025, the DOJ launched a 127,271- bitcoin forfeiture action against Prince Group, its largest action ever.
- After the rise in pig butchering scams, FBI Director Kash Patel targets crypto criminals.
Cyprus National Tied To Prince Group Arrested in Japan
Hu Shi, believed to be one of the managers of Prince Group, an organization that allegedly ran one of the largest “pig butchering” scam centers in Cambodia, was arrested on June 14 in Japan.
Local reports indicate that Hu was arrested in Osaka on suspicion of falsifying public records after submitting a fraudulent address change form in April, claiming he had moved to Tokyo.
He stressed he had made this change to obtain permanent residency in Japan, but stated he left the details to his agent.
Japanese police believe that Hu, a Cyprus national, is one of the individuals affected by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designations issued in October 2025, when it labeled Prince Group as a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) alongside 145 targets.
Huione Group, a Cambodian financial conglomerate, was also targeted, with Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent stressing that it had established itself “as the marketplace of choice for malicious cyber actors like the DPRK and criminal syndicates, who have stolen billions of dollars from everyday Americans.”
Ringleader of Prince Group, Chen Zhi, was indicted on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, with the Department of Justice launching a forfeiture action of 127,271 bitcoin worth nearly $15 billion.
At the time, it was the largest forfeiture action in the department’s history.
While Chen was arrested in Cambodia and extradited to China after having his nationality stripped in January, Hu was at large before Japanese police caught him in security footage and searched for him in several luxury hotels in Osaka.
According to records, Hu is a representative director of a Tokyo-headquartered company whose capital grew sixfold in just three years.
The measure comes right after FBI Director Kash Patel vowed to strengthen the fight against pig butchering scams, stressing that he would bring these criminals to justice.