KUALA LUMPUR: Six men and three women have been arrested after Bukit Aman crippled an investment scam ring which operated in Kedah, Kuala Lumpur and Johor.
Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Comm Datuk Mohd Kamarudin Md Din said they crippled the syndicate during an operation dubbed Ops Nuri 17/2021 on June 19.
“The syndicate ran two bogus investment schemes – the Banker Capital Investment Scheme and Wow Exchange OU Investment Scheme.
“Our investigations revealed the nine, aged between 23 and 62, were involved in investment scam activities,” he said in a statement on Monday (June 21).
He said further investigations revealed the syndicate was responsible for incurring losses of over RM1.89mil.
“During our raids, we seized 13 mobile phones, 11 ATM cards, one credit card, three laptops, five cars, a tablet, documents and pamphlets connected to the schemes, and an assortment of documents.
“We also seized RM9,000 cash, 208,000 Korean Won (RM761), S$644 (RM1,986) and US$26 (RM107),” he said, adding that the case was being investigated for fraud, money laundering as well as under the Prevention of Crime Act.
Comm Mohd Kamarudin said nine investigation papers have been opened in connection with the syndicate’s activities.
“The syndicate targeted Malaysians and used two modus operandi.
“For the Banker Capital Investment Scheme, the syndicate would attract victims with the promise of between 100% and 400% returns on investment and offered investment packages from between US$100 (RM415) and US$10,000 (RM41,500),” he said.
Comm Kamarudin said for the Wow Exchange OU Investment Scheme, the syndicate promoted a cryptocurrency platform and e-wallet called Wowx, which was based in Singapore.
“The syndicate directed victims to make transfers to several bank accounts, but they never saw any returns.
“I want to take this opportunity to advise the public not to be easily duped by advertisements on investments on social media,” he said.
He also advised the public to cross-check bank accounts on http://ccid.rmp.gov.my/semakmule/ before making any transactions.
“You can also contact the CCID Scam Response Centre at 03-2610 1559 or 03-2610 1599.
“You can also send us a message on WhatsApp at 013-2111 222 to tip us off on any commercial crime activities,” he said.