Alleged ‘Enforcer’ in Prince Group Scam Network Identified

A U.S. federal indictment against Prince Group chairman Chen Zhi refers to several alleged co-conspirators without naming them. However, identifying details in the document led reporters to conclude that one of those individuals, described as “Co-Conspirator-2,” is Chen Sokly. U.S. prosecutors allege that he acted as an enforcer for the Prince Group and helped shield the sanctioned Cambodian conglomerate from law-enforcement action. Chen Sokly has not been charged in the United States.

The indictment alleges that Co-Conspirator-2 used corruption and violence to protect the Prince Group’s position among operators of large-scale online scam networks. Although the filing withheld his name, information about his nationality, business positions, residences, and corporate activities reportedly matched the profile of Chen Sokly, who was born in China and later lived in Cambodia, Singapore, Cyprus, and the United States.

Chen Zhi faces U.S. charges involving alleged wire fraud and money-laundering conspiracies. He was extradited from Cambodia to China, where he also faces criminal proceedings. Available U.S. court documents do not indicate that he has entered a plea. A spokesperson for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York declined to provide an update on the case.

The Prince Group rejected the accusations, saying it would challenge the allegations and highlight what it described as factual and chronological inconsistencies. The conglomerate also denied that Chen Zhi or the organization had ever participated in scams, money laundering, or other criminal conduct alleged by U.S. authorities.

Alleged Role in the Prince Group

U.S. prosecutors identified seven individuals in the indictment only by code names. According to the filing, Co-Conspirator-2 served as a Prince Group “enforcer” and allegedly used corrupt methods and intimidation to protect the group’s interests among scam operators.

Reporting by OCCRP and The Straits Times identified the person as Chen Sokly, who was reportedly born Chen Xing in Shanghai in 1986. He later obtained Cambodian citizenship in 2017 under the name Chen Sokly and acquired citizenship in Cyprus the following year using his birth name.

The indictment alleges that Co-Conspirator-2 served as head of the Prince Group’s “risk control” operations. Prosecutors claim he monitored police investigations, negotiated corruptly with foreign officials, and worked to protect scam compounds, cryptocurrency investment schemes, and money-laundering operations.

The filing further alleges that he directed a Chinese law-enforcement official to arrange for Cambodian police to extort businesses on behalf of the Prince Group. Prosecutors also claim he purchased a yacht valued at more than $3 million for a senior government official and offered to look after the son of a Chinese Ministry of Public Security official after the official allegedly promised to help Prince Group associates avoid prosecution.

Corporate Connections

The indictment states that Co-Conspirator-2 chaired Awesome Global Investment Group between 2017 and 2022. The company was described as a Cambodian Prince Group subsidiary involved in entertainment, hospitality, and property development. Cambodian corporate records reportedly show that Chen Sokly held the same position during that period.

The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Awesome Global Investment Group because of its alleged links to Chen Zhi, who had previously chaired its board. Another company director and several executives connected to the wider group have also been sanctioned. A Treasury spokesperson did not explain why Chen Sokly had not been sanctioned alongside other alleged senior Prince Group figures.

Chen Sokly did not respond to requests for comment. A lawyer listed in California corporate records as his company agent said that the firm no longer represented him and did not respond to a request to forward questions.

The Prince Group described the U.S. actions as part of an international effort to seize its assets under the cover of law enforcement. Its spokesperson specifically referred to the freezing of approximately $15 billion in bitcoin and alleged that the criminal case was being used to create a legal justification for retaining cryptocurrency that had been taken from Chen Zhi.

Activities in Singapore

The indictment describes Co-Conspirator-2 as a Cambodian and Cypriot citizen who lived in both the United States and Singapore. That description reportedly corresponds with Chen Sokly’s known business and property records.

Chen Sokly purchased a luxury apartment in Singapore in 2017 and subsequently became involved in several companies. He reportedly owned half of Sunseeker M Singapore Pte. Ltd., while his wife held the remaining shares. The company operated as a regional dealer for Sunseeker International, a British superyacht manufacturer.

A 2018 video from a Sunseeker event showed numerous Lamborghinis travelling through Singapore before arriving at a marina where Chen Sokly, who used the name Martin Chen, socialised with attendees.

Sunseeker International said Chen Sokly had worked as a sub-dealer for Sunseeker Asia under the name Martin Chen until the business ended its trading relationship in 2019. The company also said Sunseeker M Singapore served as its official regional dealer from February 2021 until January 2022.

During 2018 and 2019, Chen Sokly reportedly served as a director or shareholder in companies registered in Cambodia, Singapore, and Mauritius. One of those entities, Oceanic Opportunity Fund PCC, provided more than $50 million in loans to Prince Bank, which was later sanctioned.

Oceanic Opportunity Fund was also a shareholder in Skyline Investment Management Pte. Ltd., a Singapore-based investment company that was controlled by Chen Zhi when it was sanctioned by the United States in October 2025.

Some of these businesses involved shared ownership or joint directorships with individuals connected to Huione Group, a cryptocurrency and payment-services company. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Huione Group together with the Prince Group, alleging that it laundered money for criminal actors, including scam networks and North Korean hackers.

Following an investigation by the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the U.S. Justice Department alleged that Huione Group processed approximately $4 billion in illicit funds between 2021 and 2025, including money linked to the Prince Group. Huione Group did not respond to requests for comment. There is no evidence presented in the supplied reporting that Chen Sokly directly participated in Huione Group’s operations, and the allegations against the company and its former chairman remain unproven.

Relocation to California

In 2020, an Asian yachting publication featured Chen Sokly alongside several wealthy business figures. He was identified as Martin Chen, a name he reportedly used in both Singapore and the United States.

The previous year, Chen Sokly purchased the first of two luxury properties in the Los Angeles area. One of those properties was sold to him by Fang Zhizhen, who has reportedly been wanted in China since 2016 over alleged computer-hacking activities.

The United States sanctioned Fang Zhizhen in June and alleged that he had been involved with Prince Group online payment systems used for scams and had helped launder proceeds from the conglomerate’s scam centres. Fang did not respond to requests for comment.

California corporate records show that Chen Sokly began registering companies in the state in 2020. Many of them used an address in City of Industry, an eastern Los Angeles municipality.

In August 2020, his wife, Li Mengmeng, purchased a newly built five-bedroom home with a swimming pool in a gated community near Los Angeles. She did not respond to requests for comment.

In 2021, Chen Sokly reportedly brought his superyacht, Susan, to the United States after creating a company named after the vessel.

Property records indicate that, two months after the United States imposed broad sanctions on the Prince Group in October 2025, Li Mengmeng transferred ownership of the second property to a trust held in her name. The available information does not establish that the transfer was connected to the sanctions.

Further Sanctions and Alleged Scam Revenue

The United States announced another round of sanctions against the Prince Group on 23 June 2026. Authorities in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Thailand, and Singapore have also targeted people allegedly connected to the group.

Shortly after the sanctions and the indictment against Chen Zhi, prosecutors filed a civil-forfeiture action seeking to freeze assets they considered proceeds of alleged Prince Group crimes, including billions of dollars in cryptocurrency. The filing quoted a conversation in which Co-Conspirator-2 allegedly claimed that law-enforcement raids on the group’s scam compounds had not harmed the organisation.

The indictment also alleges that Co-Conspirator-2 claimed the Prince Group was earning more than $30 million each day in 2018 from “pig-butchering” schemes and related illegal activities. These scams, known in Chinese as sha zhu pan, typically begin with contact through messaging applications or social media. The perpetrators build trust with victims before directing them toward fraudulent investment platforms and extracting as much money as possible.

The allegations concerning Chen Zhi, Chen Sokly, the Prince Group, Huione Group, and other individuals remain allegations unless established through court proceedings.