E. Martin Estrada, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Three individuals have been arrested in Santa Ana, California, on federal criminal complaints for allegedly laundering over $13 million obtained from victims of investment scams known as "pig butchering." The defendants are accused of setting up shell companies to facilitate the illegal activities.
The arrested individuals include Mingzhi Li, 24, also known as "Zheng Lin," and Zeyue Jia, 23, also known as "Jiao Jiao Liu," both residing in Downtown Los Angeles. Jun Shi, 55, from San Gabriel was also taken into custody. They face charges for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business which could result in a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.
Li and Jia are Chinese nationals who entered the United States on student visas that have since expired. They were ordered jailed without bond by a federal magistrate judge. Shi was released on a $20,000 bond. Their arraignments are scheduled for March 17 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
According to affidavits filed with the complaints, Shi established Magic Location Trading LLC and Stone Water Trading LLC on December 7, 2022. Both companies operated from the same address in downtown Los Angeles and functioned as money service businesses without proper registration with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) or the State of California.
Shi and Li opened bank accounts under Magic Location using Li's alias “Zheng Lin,” while Jia used her alias “Jiao Jiao Liu” to open accounts for Stone Water. These accounts received funds from investment fraud victims totaling approximately $7.6 million for Stone Water and about $5.4 million for Magic Trading through numerous wire transfers.
The funds were allegedly transferred to overseas bank accounts and other domestic businesses or used for personal expenses by the defendants.
Victims believed they were funding legitimate investment accounts involving commodities like gold contracts or virtual currencies such as Bitcoin through digital platforms. However, these investments were part of fraudulent schemes where scammers gained victims' trust through dating services or social media before directing them to fake investment platforms.
One example involved a 72-year-old Minnesota man who was convinced by a woman he met on WhatsApp to invest in a platform called “Enkuu.” He wired substantial amounts to Stone Water and Magic Trading but later found himself unable to withdraw his funds.
The FBI is investigating this case while Assistant United States Attorneys Kristin N. Spencer and Angela C. Makabali are prosecuting it.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
