America offers US$4 million bounty for arrest of Chinese money launderer
Fugitive fled after 20-year sentence for laundering crypto scam funds.
The United States has placed a $4 million bounty on Daren Li, a 43-year-old Chinese national who fled after being convicted of laundering money from cryptocurrency scams in Southeast Asia. The reward, announced via the State Department's Transnational Organised Crime Rewards Programme, targets Li for his role in a scheme that defrauded victims through crypto and related fraud, with laundered funds flowing through multiple jurisdictions.
Li pleaded guilty in November 2024 to conspiracy to launder money, was sentenced in absentia to 20 years in February 2026 by the US Court for the Central District of California, but escaped after removing his electronic monitoring device in December 2025. He holds dual citizenship in China and St Kitts and Nevis, and has lived in China, Cambodia, and the UAE, complicating extradition efforts.
- Daren Li, 43, was convicted of laundering funds from crypto scams in Southeast Asia.
- He was sentenced to 20 years in February 2026 but fled after removing his ankle monitor in December 2025.
- US offers $4 million reward; Li holds dual China–St Kitts and Nevis citizenship.
Why It Matters
Highlights cross-border crypto crime enforcement and the challenges of tracking fugitives with multiple citizenships.