MANILA, Phiippines – A total of 32 people, including 8 foreigners, were arrested in two separate raids in Pasig City on Thursday, November 29, over an online scam targeting Australian investors.
They were caught allegedly operating “boiler rooms” where they called on potential investors to get into deals that eventually failed to yield returns.
Police Senior Inspector Myrna Diploma, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) public information officer-in-charge, said on Friday, November 30, that the NCRPO, Pasig police, and the Anti-Cyber Crime Group (ACG) served search warrants on two offices in Pasig, and carried out the arrest.
The arrest: The 8 foreigners and 24 Filipinos were arrested in two different rented spaces in Ortigas Center in Pasig City.
They allegedly used “high-pressure sales tactics” to lure their investors. Cops have not released an estimate on how much the group gained from the scheme.
The suspects were arrested on the spot for alleged violation of Republic Act No. 8799 or The Securities and Regulation Code, and Republic Act No. 10175 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
The representative and leader of the sham investment firm, a certain Owen Lloyd Sterling, was not found in the places that were searched.
How the search began: Police did not crack the scam on their own.
Police began their hunt for the alleged scammers after an Australian cybercrime investigation firm IFW Global wrote to the PNP about scamming companies being run in Ortigas.
After building on the tip, cops applied for the search warrant. – Rappler.com
There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.