PHNOM PENH: Cambodian authorities have frozen more than US$300 million in assets linked to technology-based fraud, with the massive sum held across multiple bank accounts during the anti-scam operations of the past 14 months.
According to the Secretariat of the Commission for Combating Technology-enabled Scams (CCTC), several other assets belonging to perpetrators are currently undergoing the legal process of being frozen and appraised for further action.
The CCTC declared that the freezing of the assets demonstrates a strong commitment to law enforcement and serves as a valuable strategy to sever the financial lifelines and illicit proceeds of criminal syndicates.
The figures reflect the results of a sustained crackdown on cybercrime in Cambodia from July 2025 to Aug 31, 2026.
During this period, authorities referred 446 cases to the courts, involving 3,927 suspects — including ringleaders and their senior accomplices — of 29 different nationalities.
The crackdown also extended to internal “cleansing” of the authorities.
In four separate cases, legal action has been pursued against 15 officials who are suspected of being complicit in illegal activities scam operations.
The group includes a deputy prosecutor, a deputy director-general of immigration, a deputy Phnom Penh municipal police chief and a former director-general at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, along with several other police and military officers.
The CCTC report noted that specialised forces inspected 832 suspicious locations, leading to raids on 663 of them. Among them, authorities identified and took control of 86 major “scam compounds”, which are now facing legal procedures for state seizure.
The gaming sector was also heavily impacted, with 27 casinos found to be involved in fraudulent activities. Consequently, 18 licenses were revoked, while nine others were suspended.
“There are no longer any large-scale scam operations in Cambodia,” the CCTC Secretariat has asserted.
Despite the claim that major compounds have been eradicated, authorities warned that some fraudulent activities persist. They noted that criminal operations have shifted to smaller, clandestine methods — operating out of rented rooms, guesthouses, condos, private homes, cafes, or even vehicles, to avoid detection.
The CCTC urged the public to report suspicious activities, so authorities can take action against these evolving criminal networks. - The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
