Firm claiming billions in overseas wealth is unregistered, says Bukit Aman

KUALA LUMPUR: A company claiming to have access to billions of ringgit in overseas gold and cash reserves is not registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM), says Comm Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa.

The Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director said police have received 43 reports about the company since 2023 and opened 15 investigation papers under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.

“So far, we have recorded 40 statements from 37 victims and three witnesses to assist in the probe,” he told reporters on Friday (Aug 8).

Comm Rusdi said investors were promised high returns once the purported reserves could be liquidated, provided enough capital was raised to cover “management and activation costs.”

“They were persuaded by the mastermind, an individual posing as a ‘Datuk Seri’, who spun a story about inheriting assets belonging to an Indonesian national overseas.

“Further checks showed that the title used by the individual was fake,” he said.

He added that victims were also deceived through forged documents purportedly issued by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), complete with fake logos, stamps and signatures to convince them that the investment scheme was legitimate.

“We are still verifying the documents with Bank Negara.

“To date, no investor has received any returns, with the suspects offering excuses such as technical issues overseas and expired documents,” Comm Rusdi said.

No arrests have been made yet, and investigations are ongoing, he added.

It was previously reported that 57 individuals suffered losses amounting to nearly RM8.4mil after falling victim to what has been described as a “superstitious” investment scam involving alleged overseas gold and cash reserves worth tens of billions of US dollars.