Thai Warrant Issued for Chinese Executive in $28M Crypto Case

Thai investigators have issued an arrest warrant for Chinese businessman Wang Yicheng, accusing him of heading a cross‑border network that ran illegal cryptocurrency mining operations consuming about $28 million in electricity and laundering funds from online scams and gambling.

The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) charged Wang in November with theft and violations of Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act, which covers interference with computer systems. Last week the agency issued additional warrants for four Chinese nationals and four Myanmar nationals linked to the alleged network.

Investigators describe Wang, a former leader of a Thai‑Chinese trade association, as a central figure among a group of Chinese investors who established illicit mining sites and moved proceeds through digital assets.

According to Police Major Woranan Srilam, a DSI spokesperson, Wang is believed to have left Thailand. The DSI is working with international partners to locate him and pursue possible extradition.

Authorities say the mining facilities were used to obscure the origin of funds from scam operations and online gambling. Blockchain analysis found a wallet registered in Wang’s name that received at least $9.1 million between 2021 and 2022 from accounts tied to so‑called pig‑butchering scams. Investigators have not determined whether Wang controlled those wallets or whether his identity was used without his knowledge.

U.S. law enforcement has identified Wang as a suspect in a digital‑asset fraud probe. In June 2023, about $500,000 in cryptocurrency was seized from an account registered in his name after the funds were traced to a fraud victim in Massachusetts.

Thai investigators are gathering blockchain transaction records and electricity usage data to support criminal charges and possible extradition requests. The DSI has not disclosed whether arrests have been made within Thailand or how many mining sites are under investigation.