British officials have ordered the seizure of a multi-million-pound London flat belonging to Thet Li, who is accused of serving as the chief financial officer for the Prince Group, a network alleged to run large-scale online scams and forced-labour schemes.
Asset freeze in the capital
The property in question is a 13th-floor penthouse near St James’s Park that Li purchased for £8.9 million in 2022. A freezing order was placed on the land-registry record after a Foreign Office investigation, and authorities intend to seek a court order to retain Li’s watches, jewellery and cash, valued at £10.6 million and £92,570 respectively.
Parallel sanctions in the United States and United Kingdom
The US Treasury added Li to a sanctions list in October 2025, labeling him a “de facto illicit finance CFO” involved in cash smuggling and laundering. The UK followed in March 2025, sanctioning him under its global-human-rights framework because of links to Prince Group’s founder, Chen Zhi, and the alleged exploitation of over 100,000 workers.
Wider asset seizures linked to Prince Group
The freezing orders extend beyond Li’s flat. They cover a £12 million mansion in St John’s Wood, a £100 million office tower in the City of London tied to Chen Zhi, as well as high-value properties linked to Wu An Ming, a senior lieutenant, including a £30 million Holland Park residence and a £53 million Belgravia townhouse.
International enforcement actions
In October of the previous year, police from the Isle of Man, working with the FBI, raided two homes believed to be owned by Li. The US has pursued the forfeiture of about $14 billion in Bitcoin associated with the group, while a Washington-based Scam Center Strike Force reported $580 million in crypto assets seized or frozen.
Additional crackdown measures
The UK also sanctioned the cryptocurrency exchange Xinbi as part of a broader effort to target Southeast Asian scam hubs. Interpol has classified the network as a global threat, underscoring the coordinated nature of the enforcement campaign.
Why it matters
The seizure of high-profile real-estate assets illustrates how law-enforcement agencies are increasingly leveraging traditional financial tools alongside crypto-focused actions to dismantle transnational fraud operations. By targeting both the physical wealth and the digital currencies of Prince Group’s leadership, authorities aim to disrupt the financial lifelines that enable large-scale scams, forced-labour exploitation, and the laundering of illicit proceeds. The case also signals heightened scrutiny of crypto-related entities that may be complicit in such schemes, potentially prompting tighter regulatory oversight worldwide.
