Taipei: Taiwan's police have arrested two members of a fraud ring and seized 24 kilograms of gold intended for money laundering and shipment overseas, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said Saturday.

According to Focus Taiwan, the CIB's Telecommunications Second Investigation Corps revealed that 169 people fell victim to fake investment scams orchestrated by the fraud ring, resulting in total losses amounting to NT$600 million (US$20.28 million).

In January 2025, an investigative task force raided the fraud ring's money laundering operations in Taichung. It was discovered that cash or cryptocurrency scammed from victims were quickly converted into gold through laundering networks and then sent to the ring's scam call center in Cambodia, according to the bureau.

On June 9, police intercepted two packages bound for Cambodia and Vietnam from a man surnamed Chen. The packages appeared to contain lead alloy doorstops for metal gates, which were seized for further investigation. The following day, the task force arrested a man surnamed Le in Taichung and seized 12 unpackaged gold bars during a raid, police said.

Further investigation led to the discovery of four more lead alloy doorstops at Chen's residence. After cutting open the doorstops and dissolving their alloy exteriors, gold bars were found hidden inside. In total, 24 kg of gold was seized in the raids, valued at approximately NT$77.42 million based on exchange rates posted by the Bank of Taiwan on June 10.

The two men, both 40 years old, are currently under investigation and could face fraud and money laundering charges, according to the CIB. Investigations into the suspects' shipping receipts revealed that shipments began in July 2024, leading police to estimate that over 300 kg of gold may have been laundered in Taiwan and shipped overseas.

The lead alloy used to wrap the gold was intended to evade X-ray scans during airport inspections before the gold was transported by air, the police said.