Federal Judge Rules Against Debiex in ‘Pig Butchering’ Romance Scam
A U.S. federal judge has ordered crypto platform Debiex to pay approximately $2.5 million after it failed to respond to a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) lawsuit accusing it of operating a romance scam that stole millions from victims.
On March 13, Arizona Judge Douglas Rayes ruled in favor of the CFTC’s motion for summary judgment, requiring Debiex to repay roughly $2.26 million to defrauded customers and pay a civil penalty of nearly $221,500.
Judge Rayes stated there was no indication that Debiex’s failure to respond to the lawsuit was due to “excusable neglect.”
Debiex’s Romance Scam Defrauded Victims of Millions
The CFTC filed its lawsuit in January 2024, alleging that Debiex orchestrated a “pig butchering” scam—a scheme where fraudsters build romantic relationships with victims online to manipulate them into fraudulent investments.
According to the CFTC, Debiex’s operators posed as successful crypto traders, gaining victims’ trust through social media interactions before convincing them to invest. At least five victims were lured into depositing around $2.3 million into Debiex, which the platform then stole.
Court Orders Funds Transfer from Money Mule’s Crypto Wallet
The CFTC also accused Zhāng Chéng Yáng of acting as a “money mule” for Debiex, using his crypto wallet to receive and launder stolen funds.
On March 12, Judge Rayes granted a default judgment against Zhāng, ruling that the CFTC had sufficiently demonstrated his control over an OKX wallet that contained fraudulently obtained assets. OKX had been “voluntarily preserving” the contents of Zhāng’s wallet, which included nearly 63 Ether (valued at around $119,500) and $5.70 in Tether. The judge ordered these assets to be transferred to an unnamed victim.
Fake Trading Platform Used to Trick Victims
Debiex falsely marketed itself as a “Blockchain Network Decentralized perpetual contract trading platform,” promoting futures trading and mining transactions.
The CFTC revealed that scammers impersonated women, engaging in ongoing conversations with victims and sharing fake personal photos to build trust. Once victims deposited crypto into their accounts, Debiex manipulated account balances, showing fictitious profits and trading positions to encourage further investments.
“All of this information was most likely false,” the CFTC stated, adding that customer funds were transferred across multiple wallets to conceal their true destination.
