DSI conducted further investigation for Chinese grey capital connected with illicit crypto mining – transnational money laundering, circulating more than 10 billion baht per year

DSI conducted further investigation for Chinese grey capital connected with illicit crypto mining – transnational money laundering, circulating more than 10 billion baht per year

The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) expanded its crackdown on stealing and using electricity to operate digital currency mining businesses intensively, until it is able to expand the results from the electricity theft case to the investigation of transnational grey capital networks linked to cybercrime, money laundering, and the movement of illegal assets at the international level.

        In 2025, the Bureau of Technology and Cybercrime, DSI, was able to smash 3 networks of stealing and using electricity to supply large-scale digital currency mining, seized more than 6,390 digital currency mining machines, and detected damage caused to the Provincial Electricity Authority totaling over 953 million baht. This is one of the cases of stealing and using state public utilities that has the highest value of damage in recent years. Moreover, the results of the investigation also revealed evidence linked to certain state officials who helped or facilitated the group of wrongdoers; therefore, the Department of Special Investigation submitted the 2 case files that are within the power of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), covering 7 electricity authority officials, 1 law enforcement agency official, and a group of 13 capitalists or co-conspirators. Aside from this, the expansion of results from the digital currency mining network also led to the investigation of Chinese capital groups that played an important role in managing large financial networks in Thailand, by discovering information and evidence linked to the laundering of money obtained from cybercrime, such as telephone deception gangs (Call Center Scam) and transnational online gambling networks.

        From the investigation of financial routes, it was found that bank accounts and juristic persons connected with the network had financial movements in an abnormally high volume, with the use of Myanmar nationals to withdraw cash from financial institutions within the country in the amount of about 30 - 50 million baht per day, and more than 10 billion baht in annual transactions. Reflecting complex and efficient financial structures of criminal organizations for moving huge amounts of funds. DSI received information from American authorities showing that Mr. Wang Yi Chen, an important member of this organization, is a suspect in a digital asset fraud case. The U.S. Secret Service has seized the suspect-linked digital asset valued at approximately 17.8 million USD, or 620 million THB, resulting in total damages of 2 billion THB. DSI has issued arrest warrants for 8 suspects, including 4 Chinese capitalists and 4 Burmese crews; arrest warrants for 7 individuals are in the process of being issued, and 5 have been summoned to acknowledge their charges. DSI is now rushing to gather evidence to finalize the case files and submit them to the Special Case Prosecutor for further legal proceedings.

 DSI evaluates that electricity theft for crypto mining is more than just a crime of stealing electricity. It is a key tool for transnational crime groups to generate income, launder illicit funds, and fuel cybercrime networks, causing widespread damage to the country's economic and financial security.