Chen Zhi: The baby-faced 'ghost' boss who’s the James Bond villain of Southeast Asia

Chen Zhi remains an enigmatic figure.

At only 37 years old, he is widely regarded as the orchestrator of South-east Asia’s most profitable criminal enterprises, encompassing online fraud, human trafficking, and money laundering.

Authorities in the United States and the United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on 128 companies associated with Chen and the Prince Group, as well as 17 individuals of seven different nationalities allegedly involved in his scam empire.

Assets linked to Chen in both the UK and US are frozen.

Last week, the US Department of Justice charged Chen Zhi with masterminding a "cyber fraud empire… a criminal enterprise built on human suffering."

But where is this mysterious mogul hiding?

Spoiler: nobody knows.

Let’s zoom through his epic saga like it’s a Netflix crime binge.

From Fujian gamer to Cambodian Kingpin.

Picture this: a 20-something Chen Zhi in Fujian, China, tinkering with a dinky internet gaming gig.

Fast-forward to 2010-ish, he moves to Cambodia.

Phnom Penh’s going from cute colonial vibes to a shiny skyscraper jungle, and Sihanoukville’s morphing into Asia’s Vegas on steroids – all fuelled by Chinese cash, Belt and Road bucks, and gamblers dodging China’s no-fun laws.

Chen took all of it. 

By 2014, Chen’s a Cambodian citizen (bye, Chinese passport ), snags a $250K golden ticket to own land, and in 2015 (age 27, rude), he drops Prince Group – think malls, 5-star hotels, and a bonkers $16 billion eco-city called Bay of Lights.

He's collecting passports like Pokémon: Cyprus (2018, $2.5M), Vanuatu, and even a Cambodian royal bling title (Neak Oknha, $500K donation). 

He’s launching airlines left and right, advising prime ministers (Hun Sen’s crew), and funding scholarships like a low-key Oprah.

Locals call him “courteous and chill” – the quiet charisma of a guy who’s definitely not plotting world domination… or is he?  

Cue 2019: Sihanoukville’s bubble pops. Chinese syndicates turn casinos into scam HQs, online gambling gets banned, and 450,000 tourists ghost.

But Chen? He’s thriving

Buys a £12M London mansion, a £95M office tower, and allegedly splurges on NYC pads, private jets, a superyacht, AND a Picasso (art flex activated ).

US Treasury swoops in: $14 BILLION in Bitcoin seized – the biggest crypto grab EVER. DOJ calls it a “cyber fraud empire built on human suffering.” Ouch.

They sanction 128 companies, 17 shady sidekicks (7 nationalities!), and freeze his UK/US assets.

Cambodia’s “scam compounds”? Billions in crypto snatched from victims worldwide. 

Here’s the tea: Chen’s a ghost.

Prince Group’s website still paints him as a “respected philanthropist”, but the man’s vanished faster than a comet.

Is he sipping cocktails on a yacht?

Chilling in a secret eco-city? Or just vibing with his goatee in a Cambodian penthouse? Your guess is as good as the FBI’s. 

Chen Zhi went from gamer nerd to Asia’s scam overlord in a decade, built a legit empire, then allegedly flipped it into a human-trafficking, crypto-stealing machine.

Assets frozen, billions seized, and the dude’s missing in action.