US authorities have charged six Africa-based suspects accused of running a cryptocurrency investment scam from Madagascar that allegedly defrauded about 800 Americans.
The US Department of Justice announced the charges on Tuesday, October 27, saying the case involved a criminal network with alleged links to China and Malaysia that targeted victims through fake non-fungible token (NFT) investment platforms.
According to affidavits unsealed in the case, the group established scam compounds in Madagascar in early 2025, reportedly relocating operations from Cambodia following law enforcement action there.
Investigators allege that scammers posed as women on dating websites and built relationships with victims before persuading them to invest in fraudulent NFT platforms.
Victims were then directed to connect their cryptocurrency wallets to the websites and add funds. The scammers allegedly siphoned money from the wallets without the victims’ knowledge.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation identified about 74 cryptocurrency wallets linked to approximately 800 victims who reported financial losses after interacting with the platforms. The stolen funds were allegedly transferred to cryptocurrency accounts associated with actors based in China.
One of the accused, Chui Kok Wa, has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is alleged to have led the scheme.
The US Attorney’s Office said information recovered from Wa’s phones included employment contracts, work schedules, payment arrangements linked to money stolen from victims, and scripts instructing workers on how to manipulate victims’ emotions to encourage investment.
The US Scam Center Strike Force also said it had restrained more than $1 billion in cryptocurrency linked to fraud and scams and seized 700 fraudulent cryptocurrency investment websites as part of its wider enforcement efforts.
US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said the force was expanding its operations beyond Southeast Asia as criminal networks moved into other regions, including Africa and Europe.
In August 2026, the FBI sent a team to Madagascar to assist local authorities in dismantling 13 alleged scam compounds, where more than 3,200 electronic devices were seized, according to the Justice Department.
However, US authorities said their efforts to interview individuals connected to the operations were hindered after Madagascar repatriated several suspects to China before the investigation was completed.
Pirro called on the Madagascar government to cooperate with the United States and extradite the six accused individuals. The US government has also obtained a material witness warrant to interview 15 scheme employees who reportedly claimed they had been trafficked and abused.
The charges remain allegations, and the accused are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
