People in many jurisdictions abroad who were looking to invest their retirement savings were fleeced by alleged bogus investment scams operating from Johannesburg and Cape Town.
Six suspects were arrested in Johannesburg on Tuesday during a takedown operation by the Hawks working with Interpol and other entities. They were found in an office with 25 call centre agents.
The arrests stem from an investigation initiated in 2022 triggered by statements provided by 43 victims from Australia, said Hawks spokesperson Lt-Col Christopher Singo.
“It is alleged the syndicates advertised bogus investment opportunities through social media platforms, targeting victims who were close to retirement age and in possession of substantial savings and seeking growth and preservation of their funds.
“The suspects allegedly operated fraud ‘boiler room’ call centres, using call centre agents to communicate with victims online. Victims were initially persuaded to make small online investments which falsely reflected high returns. Communication between the agents and victims would continue via platforms such as Skype, Messenger, Zoom and WhatsApp until victims were convinced to invest larger sums of money.
“The syndicates allegedly operated the illegal activities from Gauteng and the Western Cape. The criminal activities spanned several jurisdictions, with victims primarily identified in Australia, Britain, America, Canada and New Zealand.”
Singo said the syndicates registered many companies to lease premises from which to operate.
“To conceal their operations, the suspects would allegedly change locations every three to six months, along with their registered company entities. The entities were also allegedly used to open and operate banking facilities.
“The syndicates are further accused of using slick brand names, professional-looking logos, sophisticated websites with client login portals, fictitious press releases, fabricated marketing material and false testimonials to create the illusion of legitimate and lucrative investment platforms.”
