KUALA LUMPUR – The organiser of the annual Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta (MyBalloonFiesta) has lodged a police report after it caught wind of a possible scam involving the event on social media.
AKA Balloon Sdn Bhd director Nur Izzati Khairudin alleged that a party has been impersonating her company on Facebook and offering plot rentals to booth vendors and traders, even though there are no plans to hold the fiesta soon.
She said the police report was lodged at the Jalan Tun Razak police station in Wangsa Maju yesterday afternoon.
When contacted by The Vibes, Izzati said the “event” promoted is touted as being scheduled for next weekend between June 16 and 19.
However, checks revealed that no such event is slated to be held in the federal administrative capital next weekend.
The “organiser” floated the option for the vendors to rent plots ranging from 10 and 20 sq ft each, for a rate of RM1,500 and RM2,500 respectively, over the period of four days.
The trading plots were being offered on at least one Facebook group, named “Food Truck (Info Tapak Niaga)”, which claims to cater to small event and bazaar traders.
The party also left a contact number on the posts for any enquiries.
The event being promoted is certainly not from us, as we do not have any solid plans to hold the fiesta anytime soon,” Izzati said.
“Perhaps there could be something later this year. But as discussed (with authorities) late last year, so far there is nothing concrete on the pipeline yet.”
MyBalloonFiesta was first held in 2009, and organised annually over the next ten years, with the exception of 2018.
The festival was called off in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and has been on hold since.
On average, the festival brings in around 20 hot air balloons, mostly from American and European countries, and attracts up to 150,000 visitors, the director said.
Izzati said she came to know of the matter from a partner who spotted the posts on the Facebook page.
Celebrities supposedly lined up to perform
She said she had also made checks with local authorities, the Putrajaya Corporation, who were not aware of the event next weekend, which means it is not possible that another party is holding a hot-air balloon festival there.
Izzati also said she had pretended to be a potential vendor to ask for details – and the person on the other side claimed that the event would include performances from big entertainment names such as Datuk Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin, Aina Abdul, Khai Bahar, Akim Ahmad, Hazama, Faizal Tahir, Awie, and more.
The (alleged) scammer was even willing to take deposits and gave his account number, which we forwarded to police,” she said.
She noted the lineup was indeed “impressive” but was “wishful thinking”, as the fiesta was more of a down-to-earth affair in the past.
Her company has issued a statement warning the public against a third party claiming to be the organiser of the festival and making offers to booth vendors.
“We would like to stress that the claims are false and the procedures with such modus operandi are fraudulent in nature and are most definitely not affiliated with AKA,” it said.
The company added that any payment for MyBalloonFiesta should only be made to its official banking account, and not any personal accounts or those from other companies.
The company also encouraged interested parties to conduct background checks for such events and follow its official social media sites for updates and developments. – The Vibes, June 10, 2022
