Latest news with #investmentfraud
Malay Mail
16 hours ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
Muar man loses nearly RM490,000 in online stock scam promising 500pc returns
MUAR, July 29 — An employee of a furniture factory here claimed to have lost RM488,740 after being duped by an online stock investment fraud syndicate. Muar police chief ACP Raiz Mukhliz Azman Aziz said the 46-year-old victim, in his report lodged yesterday, claimed that he came across an advertisement for an investment on social media in early May and clicked on a link. 'He was then contacted by an unknown individual via the WhatsApp application and instructed to download an application known as 'PHG PLUS' for investment purposes that promised a lucrative return of up to 50 per cent of the investment amount within a week and 500 per cent within six months. 'Lured by the sweet promise, the victim deposited a total of RM488,740 into six different accounts, involving 39 transactions, from May 21 to July 21, 2025,' he said in a statement today. Raiz Mukhliz said the victim realised he had been cheated when, upon attempting to withdraw what was claimed to be RM6 million, he was asked to make an additional payment of RM600,000 for supposed income tax purposes. 'Realising it was a scam, the victim lodged a police report, and the case is now being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code,' he said. — Bernama
Emirates 24/7
21-07-2025
- Emirates 24/7
Dubai Police Nab Cybercrime Gang Posing as Investment Brokers
Dubai Police have apprehended a cybercrime gang that specialised in online fraud by promoting fake trading and investment schemes through social media platforms. The arrests were made by the Anti-Fraud Centre at the General Department of Criminal Investigation following intensive monitoring and investigation. The operation, which the force revealed its details as part of the national awareness campaign #BeAwareofFraud, was launched after receiving several reports from victims who were contacted by the gang via phone calls. The suspects falsely claimed to represent reputable electronic investment and trading platforms, using this cover to gain the trust of their targets. The gang convinced victims they could earn high and quick profits, prompting them to transfer funds which were subsequently funnelled into bank accounts outside the UAE. The identities and locations of the suspects were thoroughly identified, leading to their swift arrest. Legal measures have been taken to refer them to the competent judicial authorities. Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.
Gulf Business
21-07-2025
- Gulf Business
Dubai Police arrest cybercrime gang behind fake online investment schemes
Image: Dubai Media Office The arrests were carried out by the Anti-Fraud Centre at the General Department of Criminal Investigation, following extensive monitoring and investigation efforts, according to a report published by the Dubai Media Office. The suspects had contacted victims through phone calls, falsely presenting themselves as representatives of legitimate electronic trading and investment platforms. They used these claims to gain victims' trust and convince them to transfer funds with the promise of fast and high returns, police said. The funds were then funneled into bank accounts located outside the UAE, authorities added. Dubai Police made the arrest as part of larger efforts to raise awareness about cyber threats The operation was part of the ongoing national awareness campaign, launched to educate the public about rising cyber threats. Dubai Police said they acted swiftly after receiving several reports from victims and were able to identify the gang's identities and locations before making the arrests. Legal procedures have been initiated to refer the suspects to the appropriate judicial authorities.
New York Times
20-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
After a Chaotic Start, a U.S. Attorney's Time May Be Running Out
Lawyers for Eliyahu Weinstein were faced with a difficult situation. After their client's 24-year sentence for investment fraud was commuted by President Trump in his first term, Mr. Weinstein was charged again with a similar crime by federal prosecutors in New Jersey and convicted at trial in late March. But his lawyers had a plan. They reached out to the state's newly installed U.S. attorney, Alina Habba, hoping to persuade her to push for an unusually light penalty, even though their client was a repeat felon. Ms. Habba granted them a rare private meeting to discuss the sentencing, which is scheduled for September, and she did not invite the prosecutors who had handled Mr. Weinstein's case, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The episode left members of her staff infuriated. A brash media personality and former personal lawyer to Mr. Trump, Ms. Habba is among the most high-profile of the new U.S. attorneys appointed by a president who has taken closer control of the Justice Department than any other in the past half century. She has made frequent media appearances and drawn attention for a series of notable investigations into Democratic political figures. Her tenure has also shattered morale inside the U.S. attorney's office and left many prosecutors looking for a way out, according to 16 close observers of the office who were interviewed for this article and spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. Ms. Habba boasted, upon taking office, of her direct line to the White House, according to people with knowledge of her remarks, even as she has insisted that she is 'not political.' Prosecutors have chafed at her availability to defense lawyers. She disbanded the office's Civil Rights Division and killed the office's longest-running prosecution just days before it was scheduled to go to trial. Three framed pictures of herself now hang in a conference room named for a legendary New Jersey crime fighter, Frederick B. Lacey. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Fashion mogul and Project Runway judge 'googled how to commit fraud to pull off $300M scheme'
A fashion mogul and former Project Runway judge has been accused of a staggering $300 million fraud. Christine Hunsicker, 48, of Lafayette, New Jersey, is charged with six counts, including fraud, aggravated identity theft and false statement charge. Prosecutors say she forged documents and misrepresented her company's financial condition to defraud investors in her companies CaaStle Inc. and P180. Hunsicker created several fake audits for investors that showed the company had significantly more money available than it did, according to prosecutors. She was eventually confronted by another investor in October 2024 but feigned innocence, the indictment said. However immediately after the investor left, she googled 'faking an audit', according to the complaint. Her lawyers said that the indictment was a 'distorted picture' which they are keen to challenge in court. Before the fraud allegations emerged, Hunsicker seemed to be a rising star in the fashion world after she was named to Crain's New York Business '40 under 40' list. She was selected as one of Inc.'s Most Impressive Women Entrepreneurs and was recognized by the National Retail Federation as someone shaping the future of retail, the indictment noted. She also appeared as a judge on Project Runway in 2016 and has been pictured posing alongside Bill and Hillary Clinton. It is a far cry from the salacious allegations which appear in the indictment which narrates how she allegedly tried to cover up her tracks. Hunsicker created fake audits that showed CaaStle had $50million in cash available, when in reality it had less than $1million in August 2023, the indictment states. She also told investors that the shares they were buying were from other shareholders who were liquidating their assets, when in fact, those people didn't exist, the indictment said. She told them the shareholders were liquidating their assets due to a 'family health emergency' or do to the FTX collapse, which saw founder Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years for also scamming his investors. 'To maintain the fiction, after facilitating the supposed secondary sales, HUNSICKER issued fake capitalization tables to the investors to demonstrate that they had purchased existing CaaStle shares,' the indictment, unsealed on Friday, said. The indictment said she portrayed CaaStle as a high-growth, private company with substantial cash on hand when she knew it faced significant financial distress. Hunsicker allegedly continued her fraudulent scheme even after the CaaStle board of directors removed her and prohibited her from soliciting investments or taking other actions on the company's behalf, the indictment said. She 'persisted in her scheme' even after law enforcement agents confronted her over the fraud, the indictment said. At a time when the business was in financial distress with limited cash available and significant expenses, CaaStle was valued by Hunsicker at $1.4billion, the indictment said. Hunsicker was lying to investors in February 2019 and continued to do so through this March, prosecutors alleged. She allegedly told one investor in August 2023 that CaaStle reported an operating profit of nearly $24million in the second quarter of 2023 when its operating profit that quarter was actually less than $30,000. The indictment alleged that she carried out the majority of the fraud by bilking CaaStle investors of $275million before forming P180 last year to infuse CaaStle with cash before its investors could discover her fraud. Through misrepresentations and omissions, she cheated P180 investors out of about $30million, the indictment said. It said CaaStle filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last month, leaving hundreds of investors holding now-worthless CaaStle shares. She self-surrendered on Friday and she faces up to 50 years in prison. Defense Lawyers Michael Levy and Anna Skotko said in a statement that prosecutors, 'have chosen to present to the public an incomplete and very distorted picture in today's indictment.' They added this is despite Hunsicker's efforts to be, 'fully cooperative and transparent' with prosecutors and the Securities and Exchange Commission. 'There is much more to this story, and we look forward to telling it,' they said.
