The national fraud compliance officer discusses the hard working team
Assistant Attorney General for National Fraud Enforcement Colin McDonald emphasizes the unprecedented scope of the federal government’s anti-fraud program. He reveals that the team carried out more than 450 major law enforcement actions within 52 days, including search warrants, arrests and convictions. McDonald emphasizes the important role of cooperation between the state and the perpetrators in the community in bringing justice to those who exploit the elderly and vulnerable, and ensuring greater prosecution efforts.
NEWNow you can listen to Fox News articles!
A major anti-fraud operation led by Meta and supported by the FBI, the Department of Justice, Microsoft, Coinbase and Starlink has resulted in 63 arrests, millions of dollars in frozen cryptocurrency and the removal of more than a million online accounts linked to the scam, officials announced Tuesday.
Meta said the operation was the company’s biggest anti-fraud operation to date and described it as the company’s first coordinated anti-fraud effort of its kind to bring together major technology companies, financial platforms and law enforcement agencies to target a wide-ranging fraud scheme.
The two-week operation began on May 18 and included the DOJ’s Scam Center Strike Force – led by US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Ferris Pirro – as well as the FBI, Royal Thai Police, Microsoft, Coinbase, Starlink and other international law enforcement partners.
The effort spanned Washington, DC, and Thailand and included the US Secret Service and law enforcement agencies from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Thailand.
GLOBAL ARRESTS RESULT IN 276 ARRESTS
Thai authorities have arrested 63 people suspected of being linked to fraud centers as part of an international crackdown on fraud networks targeting Americans. (Meta)
The operation targeted fraud networks that authorities say steal billions of dollars from Americans each year through romance scams, cryptocurrency investment scams and other fraudulent schemes. Officials said many organizations operate in Southeast Asian forced labor facilities linked to international organized crime groups.
Authorities have also warned that some people working inside Southeast Asian scam compounds are victims of trafficking forced to commit fraud, and enforcement efforts are focusing on suspected planners, recruiters, money launderers and network operators.
“Protecting people around the world from fraud is one of our top priorities,” said Chris Sonderby, Meta’s vice president and deputy general counsel in a statement.
Sonderby said the operation “demonstrates the power of cooperation in the fight against fraud.”
GLOBAL TASK FORCE DESTROYES ‘PIG’ CRYPTO SCAM RINGS THROUGH AMERICANS
Law enforcement agencies from many countries have coordinated efforts to disrupt fraud syndicates operating in Southeast Asia. (Meta)
“We are proud to partner with the industry and the DOJ, FBI, Royal Thai Police, and other law enforcement agencies in taking this global battle directly to these Asian-based fraud centers at their source,” he added.
As part of the operation, Meta removed approximately 1.4 million fraudulent accounts, pages and groups on Facebook and Instagram.
The Royal Thai Police have arrested 63 people who are suspected of being linked to fraud centers.
THEY ARE FORCED TO DECEPT OTHERS ALL OVER THE WORLD; NOW THOUSANDS ARE ARRESTED IN THE BURMESE FIGHT
Authorities said the operation targets criminal organizations involved in romance scams, investment fraud and other online schemes. (Meta)
Coinbase has frozen more than $3 million in cryptocurrency assets tied to criminal networks.
Microsoft has disabled about 20,000 accounts linked to fraudulent activity, Meta said. Starlink disrupted thousands of Internet terminals connected to the networks, according to Meta.
Authorities have also identified a number of previously unknown scams and criminal networks, which have been referred to law enforcement agencies for further investigation.
Meta said this effort marks its third operation in collaboration with the DOJ Scam Center Strike Force since December 2025.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS PROGRAM
The level of activity has grown significantly, from 59,000 fraudulent properties issued in December to 150,000 in March and 1.4 million in the latest crackdown, according to Meta.
Across the three operations, the company said it has removed more than 1.6 million fraudulent accounts, pages and groups and provided intelligence that helped lead to the arrest of 84 people by the Royal Thai Police.
