Cambodia’s Prince Group top aide, the group’s financial controller, Li Tian, has been sanctioned by the United States and the United Kingdom. The latest news indicates that Li Tian’s £170 million London mansion and his luxury watch assets have been frozen by the UK.
According to mainland China’s “Caixin Network” report on October 12, 2026, the asset tracing of the Prince Group in Cambodia, involving transnational online fraud and money laundering cases, is further unfolding in the UK. Following the freezing of multiple luxury homes in London owned by the group’s founder, Chen Zhi, and the alleged “number two figure” Hu Xiaowei, the £170 million London mansion and watches worth over tens of millions pounds under the name of Prince Group’s financial controller Li Tian have also been frozen by the UK.
On October 14, 2025, the US Department of the Treasury announced comprehensive sanctions against 146 members of the Prince Group’s transnational criminal organization, including Chen Zhi and Li Tian. The announcement accused Chen Zhi, the boss of the Prince Group, of constructing a complex network for money laundering through over a hundred shell companies globally, blending illegal income with Cambodia’s legal economy to support his apparently legitimate business activities in finance, real estate, and entertainment sectors.
Li Tian was identified as a close associate of Chen Zhi, responsible for the actual financial operations of Prince Group’s illegal funds, involving managing illegal fund flows and bulk cash smuggling.
The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office concurrently announced sanctions on October 10, 2025, following the US. On March 26, 2026, the UK further announced sanctions on 4 entities and 6 individuals, implementing asset freezes, travel bans, and directorship restrictions; many of the subjects have connections to the criminal group led by fraud kingpin Chen Zhi, including Li Tian.
The announcement pointed out that Li Tian is a confidant of Chen Zhi, responsible for managing Prince Group’s international financial network, with his activities including Taiwan. Li Tian also holds citizenship in multiple countries, including China, Cambodia, Cyprus, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Vanuatu.
Public reports have not clearly disclosed Li Tian’s current whereabouts or hiding place. According to public records, the 38-year-old Li Tian, born in Beijing, obtained a bachelor’s degree in e-commerce from Beijing Information Technology University in 2009. With over 13 years of experience in developing and operating mobile gaming businesses, managing the IT industry, and developing technical solutions in China, he is knowledgeable in digital management and information technology applications.
On June 23, 2026, the US further expanded sanctions, announcing a new round of sanctions against Hu Xiaowei, the “number two figure” of Chen Zhi Group (who was arrested by the Japanese police in June 2026), 9 other individuals, and 26 companies. The connections between the suspected money laundering assistance provided by Huione Group and the US financial system were cut off.
On October 14, 2025, the US Department of Justice formally charged Chen Zhi in the Southern District of New York with crimes including telecommunications fraud and money laundering conspiracy. On January 7, 2026, Chen Zhi was extradited from Phnom Penh, Cambodia, back to China. On July 27, 2026, mainland media reported that Chen Zhi was approved for arrest on charges including copyright infringement, operating illegal casinos, fraud, intentional injury, and illegal business operations on July 6, 2026.
According to public records, Chen Zhi was born on December 16, 1987, in Lianjiang County, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province; around 2009, he fled with stolen money to Cambodia; in 2015, he established the Prince Holdings Group; starting that year, he began building enclosed parks across Cambodia; in 2016, he founded the Jinbei Group, operating multiple online gambling platforms; in 2017, he was appointed as an advisor to the Cambodian Ministry of Interior; in 2018, he established the Prince Bank.
Chen Zhi’s Prince Group was exposed to have set up fraud compounds in countries like Cambodia and Myanmar with tacit approval from Chinese capital and official-business relations. Foreign workers were lured into these compounds where they suffered violence and torture, forced into telecom fraud and cryptocurrency Ponzi schemes, and even subjected to sex trafficking and organ harvesting.