China charges alleged scam kingpin Chen Zhi with intentional injury: Report
Extradited to China from Cambodia six months ago, Chen faces a fresh charge that could lead to him facing the death penalty.
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Alleged scam-network mastermind Chen Zhi could face the death penalty, with Chinese prosecutors adding intentional injury to the list of charges against him.
Chen, 38, was extradited from Cambodia to China six months ago and formally arrested on Jul 6, according to Chinese business magazine Caixin.
He founded the Cambodian conglomerate Prince Group, which authorities say was linked to a sprawling online scam network.
Caixin reported on Monday (Jul 27) that prosecutors dropped a previous count of concealing criminal proceeds but added copyright infringement and intentional injury charges.
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Under Chinese criminal law, intentionally inflicting bodily injury and causing death or severe injury by especially cruel means is punishable by a sentence of no less than 10 years in prison and could lead to execution.
Chen is also wanted by United States prosecutors for allegedly running one of Asia’s biggest transnational criminal organisations.
Two of his top operatives have been sent back to China and charged with crimes from illegal detention to intentional injury.
Jinbei Group founder Liu Ren was extradited from Cambodia in June, accused of running multiple online gambling platforms under the Jinbei banner and luring Chinese citizens into gambling.
Li Xiong, former chairman of the board at the Huione Group, a Prince Group subsidiary, was extradited in April.
Hu Shi, who was believed to be the second-in-command at the Prince Group, was arrested in Japan last month for falsifying documents, according to Kyodo News Agency.
Hu, who is suspected of using several names, including Chen Xiaoer and Hu Xiaowei, was identified as a 44-year-old Chinese-born Cypriot national.
Hu was sanctioned in June by the US Treasury Department, which said Hu was known as a “big brother” to Chen. He remains in Japan.
The department said Hu set up several Prince subsidiaries outside Cambodia and played a role in Prince Group’s transnational real estate activities.
In October, the US department designated the Prince Group network as a “transnational criminal organisation”.
The conglomerate spans more than 30 countries and includes a range of interests, from real estate to financial services.
In May, a Hong Kong court ordered more than HK$9 billion (US$1.15 billion) in property and assets held by Chen, his companies and individuals tied to him, to be frozen.
A week later, Cambodian authorities raided two buildings in Phnom Penh’s Prince Central Plaza linked to Chen and detained 104 individuals, including 82 Chinese nationals.
This article was first published on SCMP.
Source: South China Morning Post/kg
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