PANews reported on March 11 that Chen Zhi, who is accused of being the head of a large-scale "pig butchering" scam gang, has filed a motion in a New York federal court to dismiss the U.S. government's seizure of a batch of Bitcoin related to him. The lawyer argued that the prosecution's allegations regarding Chen Zhi's oversight of the scam park lack specific evidence and are merely a vague description of the overall situation in Cambodia. The lawyer also questioned the timeline of the cryptocurrency seizure, stating that it is impossible for these Bitcoins to be proceeds of fraud or money laundering. The U.S. Department of Justice announced last October the confiscation of 127,271 Bitcoins controlled by Chen Zhi, which were valued at approximately $1.5 billion at the time. Chen Zhi had his nationality revoked by Cambodia in January this year and was extradited to China. Following sanctions from the U.S. and the U.K., over $1 billion in assets have been frozen or seized in places such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea. Human rights organizations pointed out that after the closure of the scam park, thousands of trafficked workers have flowed out from places like Sihanoukville, facing the risk of being sold again
