Investment scam victims want SC to probe companies

KUALA LUMPUR: The schemes by several companies looked convincing and at first, “investors” did get their returns, but before long, they found their life savings gone and some even went into depression.

Claiming that they were victims of investment scams, this group of investors now wants the Securities Commission (SC) to investigate several companies for allegedly cheating them of their money.

Retired government servant Harun Mohd Yunos, 63, said he was approached by an agent in October 2021 to start investing in a scheme.

“They seemed to have all the right documents and convinced me to put in RM250,000, which I withdrew from my Employees Provident Fund.

“I received RM6,000 for about four months before the company stopped communicating.

“They told us they were redeeming shares and would give us back our investment money and that would take about two months,” he told reporters outside the SC headquarters here yesterday.

The company never got back to him and that was the last he saw of his money.

“We haven’t heard anything from them since. I lost my life savings,” he said.

Another investor in her 40s, who declined to be named, said it was her sister who persuaded her to participate in the scheme.

“Since it was my sister, I trusted the scheme and took out my savings and funds set aside for my children’s education for it.

“I even quit my job because I believed the investment returns would be enough to sustain us,” she said in between sobs.

She added that she had invested close to RM100,000 and only received returns for one month before the company vanished.

She said she was suffering from depression and had marriage problems because of this.

“I really hope the relevant agencies will help us get back our hard-earned money,” she said.

Malaysia International Humanitarian Organisation (MHO) secretary-general Datuk Hishamuddin Hashim said the victims were involved in several types of investment, including trust funds, shares and sukuk, offered by a marketing management company.

“We are here now at the SC to urge them to investigate such companies.

“Many of the victims here have retired and lost all their savings,” he said, adding that they believe hundreds of millions of ringgit has been lost to the fraudulent company so far.

Hishamuddin said they would also look into going to Bank Negara and even the Prime Minister’s Office.

MHO adviser Tan Sri Musa Hassan urged the authorities to take swift action against companies offering such investment schemes.

“They must look at the accounts of the companies involved and if there are funds, these must be frozen and channelled back to the victims,” he said.