IPOH, April 9 — Perak police have busted a cryptocurrency scam call centre operating out of a homestay in Bagan Datuk that targeted European victims, particularly those from Italy.

Perak police chief Commissioner Datuk Noor Hisam Nordin said police arrested 22 Chinese nationals during a raid at the premises at about 1am on April 7.

“Those arrested were 19 men and three women, aged between 22 and 40,” he told a press conference at the state police headquarters here today.

Noor Hisam said police also seized 35 mobile phones, nine laptops and various networking equipment worth approximately RM95,000 during the raid.

Preliminary investigations by the Commercial Crime Investigation Department’s social media analyst experts found that the syndicate was carrying out cryptocurrency investment fraud through a platform known as Pyxora Labs, targeting Italian citizens as its victims.

“The syndicate is believed to have communicated with victims through messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram, persuading individuals who showed interest to participate in the purported investment scheme.

“Victims were then instructed to make payments to the syndicate in the form of Tether through the Pyxora Labs application or website,” he said.

Tether is a cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value by being pegged to a reserve asset, typically the US dollar. Essentially, 1 USDT is meant to always equal roughly 1 US dollar.

Pyxora Labs is a broader AI‑powered platform and ecosystem for next‑generation quantitative finance and decentralised AI services.

Noor Hisam added that the syndicate is believed to have been active since early February and that all the Chinese nationals arrested possessed valid travel documents.

“We will check with the Immigration Department on their arrival details in the country.

“We are also investigating whether any local suspects are involved in the syndicate and whether they have a handler operating this scam,” he said.

He said all 22 suspects have been remanded for four days until April 10 to assist in further investigations.

The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and Section 120B of the Penal Code for criminal conspiracy.

The offences carry a penalty of imprisonment of up to 10 years, whipping and may also include a fine upon conviction.