30,000 investors believed duped of RM300 mln in Forex scam

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KOTA KINABALU: More than 30,000 investors, including many in Sabah, are believed to have suffered losses amounting to RM300 million in an international get-rich-quick scheme or Forex scam in Malaysia.

Sabah DAP adviser Dr Hiew King Cheu, who revealed this yesterday at a press conference attended by 12 of the people who claimed to have lost money in the scam, said the figures could be more as there are investors who might not have lodged any report.

Hiew said such cases were alarming as they also affected people in Sabah.

He said the Government, especially Bank Negara, should monitor such activities as they involved huge sums of money being sent out of the country.

“What is Bank Negara doing? We know that anything more than RM10,000 remitted to a foreign country must have Bank Negara’s approval, and the amount involving a single investor could reach over RM100,000, or a million, and this figure should be too big for Bank Negara to miss,” he said.

According to Hiew, the Forex scam was believed to be started in New Zealand in 2009, and following numerous complaints, the New Zealand police took action to investigate.

“After investigation was carried out (in New Zealand), the scammers then moved to other countries such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, China as well as in Malaysia,” he said.

Hiew said a local company was then set up in Sabah last year to lure local investors to invest with the promise of huge returns.

He said many people invested their hard earned money but after a year, the company ceased operations and the owners went missing.

Numerous police reports were lodged by the victims but the scammers had not been brought to justice, he said.

“We want this case to be exposed to the general public so they will not fall victim.

“DAP in Sabah believes that it is our responsibility to help these poor people who had been made victims of this scam and to expose this case and seek justice.

“They did not know that this thing was illegal as they had been promised they could make good returns if they invested,” he said.

Meanwhile, DAP Complaints Bureau deputy chief Mitchell Tai reminded the public not to fall for easy-money-making schemes.

“Whether it’s genuine or a scam, precautionary measures should be taken seriously,” he said.