Singapore police have blocked the sale or transfer of vehicles owned by car leasing business SRS Auto, as authorities expand a multi-agency investigation into allegations that the firm helped Chen Zhi, chairman of Prince Group, launder money.
The investigation began in 2024 after police received financial intelligence from the Suspicious Transaction Reporting Office regarding 38-year-old Cambodian busnessmen Chen.
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Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi in a photo in 2021. Photo by Prince Holding Group |
On Oct. 14, Chen was indicted in the U.S. over alleged wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy, and for allegedly directing the operation of forced-labour scam compounds in Cambodia.
In Singapore, the probe involves police and agencies within the Anti-Money Laundering Case Coordination and Collaboration Network, including the Monetary Authority of Singapore and intelligence agencies. Singaporean authorities are examining a range of Chen’s business and investment activities in the country, including the automotive sector and individuals previously linked to him.
Earlier, The Straits Times reported that a commercial cluster at 2 Jalan Kilang Barat is directly linked to 11 Singapore-registered companies owned by Chen and three companies associated with his close adviser, Karen Chen.
On Oct. 14, the U.S. and U.K. imposed sanctions on Prince Group and Chen for alleged conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering.
The U.S. Treasury Department described the group as a “transnational criminal organisation.” According to US authorities, Chen’s network operated forced-labour scam centres in at least 10 compounds across Cambodia, where thousands of migrant workers were detained and forced to impersonate others on social media to defraud victims into transferring digital assets.
