Transnational scam networks in Southeast Asia are operating on an industrial scale and targeting Americans daily, a senior US law enforcement official said during a virtual press briefing conducted on February 24th.
Scott Schelble, Deputy Assistant Director of the International Operations Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), made the statement after returning from Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, where he met senior law enforcement officials and observed scam compounds firsthand.
“What became clear is that Chinese organized crime syndicates running large-scale scam operations in the region are targeting Americans every day,” Schelble said. “These are not small or isolated crimes; they are sophisticated, well-resourced criminal enterprises.”
After viewing several scam compounds, he described their scale as unprecedented. “There are entire facilities dedicated to fraud on an industrial scale,” he said. “It fundamentally changes your understanding of the threat.”
Schelble emphasized that the problem is regional rather than confined to any single country. “When we look at Southeast Asia, this is not a Cambodian problem, this is not a Vietnamese problem or a Thai problem,” he said. “This is regional and it will require a partnered aspect and a coordinated aspect if we’re going to properly take care of it.”
He warned that enforcement pressure in one jurisdiction often results in relocation. “These compounds can go anywhere next,” Schelble said. “When law enforcement places pressure in one location, the perpetrators can simply continue to another area and invest the time and money to set up a new compound.”
In Cambodia, Schelble said he discussed combating scam operations with senior leaders and expressed hope of leveraging past joint task force investigations with the Cambodian National Police to address scam compounds. He also described productive discussions with Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security and highlighted ongoing operational cooperation with the Royal Thai Police.
“This is not a symbolic relationship; it is an operational partnership built on trust, information sharing, and results,” he said of cooperation in Thailand.
According to Schelble, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded more than 80,000 complaints in 2025, with losses exceeding $2.9 billion. “These are staggering figures impacting all of us,” he said. “This is truly a global enterprise.”
He characterized the networks as part of broader organized crime. “This is no longer just cybercrime,” Schelble said. “It involves human trafficking, money laundering, and corruption all wrapped into one.”
“The geographical borders will not protect criminals who target Americans,” he added. “If these syndicates exploit borders, then we must be in a position to address that with a global and coordinated response.”
