US seeks forfeiture of $25M in crypto linked to international fraud networks

The Scam Center Strike Force, a DOJ task force focused on Southeast Asian fraud operations, has been a consistent driver of these seizures, the department said. No specific defendants, wallet addresses, or token types have been publicly disclosed. Civil forfeiture cases routinely proceed without naming suspects, prosecutors said.

The government sues the tokens themselves, arguing they are proceeds of crime. Blockchain analytics firms map transaction histories to justify the seizures, the DOJ said. Southeast Asian fraud operations, often called pig butchering scams, have become the dominant source of large-scale crypto fraud losses, the DOJ said. Victims transfer real crypto to fake platforms, and funds move through layered wallets.