GEORGE TOWN – Police arrested 21 individuals, including eight Chinese nationals, over an online investment fraud in a raid on Saturday.
Penang police chief Datuk Sahabudin Abd Manan said the suspects, aged 23 to 37, were arrested in the raid on two three-storey residential premises in Batu Ferringhi used as an operations centre.
The suspects were paid RM2,000 to RM4,000 a month by the syndicate’s mastermind.
“The syndicate’s activities were exposed when we detained a car driven by a local man, with a male Chinese national inside, at a roadblock in Batu Ferringhi.
“Preliminary investigations found that the syndicate’s modus operandi is to offer stock investment options involving Chinese investors.
“The syndicate interacts with prospective investors using the WeChat messaging application,” Sahabudin told a press conference today.
He said the syndicate is believed to have been operating for two months.
He said 453 mobile phones, 19 laptops, an iPad and two cars were seized in the raid.
“Apart from Penang, this syndicate is believed to carry out similar activities in other states, and we are still investigating if there have been local victims.”
Sahabudin said four of the eight Chinese nationals detained did not have identity documents, and further checks will be made with the Immigration Department.
He added that the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code and Section 6(3) of the Immigration Act 1959/63. – The Vibes, January 25, 2021
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