Daren Li
Sentenced to 20 years — then absconded
Case facts
- Region
- China / St. Kitts & Nevis / United States
- Estimated loss
- ~$73M wired to scheme-controlled accounts
- Victims
- Hundreds of US victims of romance-investment scams
- Filed
- Jun 6, 2026
Last reviewed .
Chinese national and St. Kitts & Nevis citizen convicted of running a $73 million pig-butchering crypto investment scheme. Sentenced in absentia to 20 years after fleeing US supervision; currently a federal fugitive.
The scheme
Li orchestrated the US end of a classic pig-butchering operation: victims were romanced on dating apps and WhatsApp, then steered into a fake crypto-investment platform that showed phantom returns until they tried to withdraw. At least $73 million was wired into shell-company accounts Li controlled at US banks, then converted to Tether and moved through wallets in Asia.
Conviction and flight
- Arrested April 2024 at Atlanta-Hartsfield airport
- Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering
- Released on bond pending sentencing — and absconded
- Sentenced in absentia to 240 months (20 years) on February 9, 2026
- Remains a fugitive; believed to be in mainland China or the Caribbean
Why pig-butchering keeps working
The scheme exploits two things at once: emotional intimacy from the romance leg, and FOMO from the fake "investment dashboard" leg. Victims see their balance grow for weeks before the platform demands "tax" or "unlock fees" to withdraw — at which point the dashboard goes dark.
Red flags
- A new online romantic interest who quickly mentions crypto trading "success"
- Investment platform you've never heard of, accessed via app-store sideload or web link
- Withdrawals work for small test amounts, fail for real amounts
- "Tax", "audit", or "unlock" fees demanded before a withdrawal can clear
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