Madagascar scam centre raids found fraud aimed at Pakistan, US and Canada

Raids on online scam centres in Madagascar have exposed links to a criminal group that previously ran similar operations in Cambodia, with the fraud targeting Pakistan and other English-speaking countries, authorities say. Thirteen Chinese-run compounds were taken down in operations carried out in August and September with the US Department of Justice (DOJ).

Key facts

• 13 Chinese-run scam compounds dismantled in operations in August and September
• 148 Chinese nationals extradited to China, according to Madagascar's justice ministry
• About $52 million of cryptocurrency seized in a single day; more than 3,200 electronic devices processed, the US authority said
• Sites ran romance, cryptocurrency and investment fraud, mostly operated by Chinese nationals
• Around 20 nationals of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe were in custody after being recruited via social media
• Fraud primarily targeted the United States, Canada and Pakistan

What did the raids uncover?

Madagascar's justice ministry said the sites conducted romance, cryptocurrency and investment fraud and were mostly run by Chinese nationals. The US authority said about $52 million of cryptocurrency was seized in one day and more than 3,200 electronic devices were processed.

The DOJ said it believed a criminal group with connections to Malaysia and China opened scam compounds in Madagascar in early 2025, likely having moved those operations from Cambodia after law enforcement action there. The man charged with running one romance scam scheme was a Malaysian national identified as Chui Kok Wa, who had installed himself in a villa in the upscale Ivato neighbourhood near the capital, Antananarivo, US authorities said.

Hassan Mouigni, the police crime unit chief, said the visa in the man's passport indicated he first arrived in 2024 and had previously been in Cambodia. The suspected head of one compound at the Live Hotel in the city was a Chinese national who was among those extradited to Beijing.

Who was targeted and who was recruited?

Mouigni said US authorities intervened because the centres primarily targeted English-speaking countries, including the United States, Canada and Pakistan. Tsitohaina Ralihivao, coordinator of the cybercrime unit at Madagascar's communications ministry, said this was why nationals from English-speaking African countries were needed.

As in scam operations in Southeast Asia, the Madagascar centres allegedly lured Africans to the island via social media with promises of salaries. Around 20 nationals of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe were in custody, authorities said. Recruited via Facebook to work in the commercial sector, most had their passports confiscated by the boss and were forced to carry out scams, Mouigni said: "They were victims of deception."

An FBI court document cited three Brazilian nationals who said they answered online work offers, ended up in a Cambodian compound and were moved to Antananarivo in early May 2026 amid an armed conflict between Cambodia and Thailand and police activity in Cambodia.

What happened to those arrested?

Madagascar's justice ministry said 148 Chinese nationals have been extradited to China. Separately, 11 Chinese nationals arrested in the crackdown walked free from a Madagascar jail in August in a widely publicised scandal allegedly implicating the head of the prison service.

Several African nationals remained in custody even though initial findings suggested they may have been victims of human trafficking, officials said. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime had warned last year about the expansion of these networks, particularly into Southern Africa, and the FBI said cyber scam centres are increasingly opening in Africa after the closure of such compounds in Southeast Asia.

What this means for travellers

The officials' accounts point to one clear risk pattern: unsolicited work offers advertised on social media promising jobs in Madagascar in the commercial sector. Those who took up such offers described having their passports confiscated on arrival and being forced to run scams, so job approaches of this kind warrant particular caution.

The presence of the networks was visible in the capital, Mouigni said, when operators moved from discreet villas to renting entire hotels. The UN agency's warning about the networks expanding into Southern Africa remains the most recent official assessment cited by officials.