KUALA LUMPUR: Eighteen individuals, including a foreign woman, have been arrested on suspicion of being involved in online forex fraud targeting victims from South Korea and the United States.
Wangsa Maju district police chief ACP Mohamad Lazim Ismail said the suspects, comprising 16 local men, one local woman and a foreign woman, were arrested at two condominium units on Jalan Ampang at 6 pm on Wednesday.
He said police also seized 62 types of equipment, including 18 computers and 43 mobile phones, during the raid.
“The modus operandi (of this syndicate) was getting people to invest in non-existent forex investment schemes, targeting South Korean and US citizens.
“They would invite investors to invest using the ‘Poly X’ platform, promising a return of 1.5 per cent profit. However, it is believed that after investing, they did not receive the promised returns,“ he said in a statement today.
He said the suspects were believed to have been carrying out their activities for the past three months and received a payment of RM3,000 per month.
“The suspects were remanded for one day (yesterday). The value of the profits obtained and the ownership of the premises are still under police investigation,“ he said, adding that the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for fraud.
