27 suspects investigated in NT$400 million investment fraud case

Taipei, Aug. 7 (CNA) Twenty-seven suspects are being investigated by prosecutors in a case linked to a NT$400 million (US$12.2 million) investment scam that used fake endorsements from celebrities and reputable companies in promotional materials, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said Wednesday.

At least 38 victims fell for the scam, which operated from May to December 2023, including a retired woman from Kaohsiung who was defrauded out of more than NT$100 million, the CIB said at a news conference when announcing the breaking of the case.

CIB officer Chiu Cheng-di (邱承迪) said the investigation began last September after a tip-off was received from a victim who responded to an investment advertisement he saw on Facebook.

The victim then joined the scammer-run LINE investment group, which advertised under the name of financial celebrity Lai Hsien-cheng (賴憲政), and downloaded a fake investment app that purported to be from a well-known Japanese securities company, Chiu said.

After following the scammers' instructions to transfer money to a designated bank account, the victim discovered he was being cheated when the money disappeared, according to Chiu.

In response, the CIB launched an investigation last November and found that the scammers, led by a 34-year-old man surnamed Liang (梁) and a 29-year-old man surnamed Chang (張), recruited several individuals to establish nine fake companies and 24 corporate accounts.

Liang and Chang, who kept the individuals confined in a rented apartment in Hsinchu, also paid them commission amounting to 1 percent of the illicit money they were instructed to withdraw from the bogus accounts, the CIB said.

Based on the leads, the CIB arrested 27 suspects from November to July in Taipei, New Taipei and Taichung, while also seizing evidence including fake investment payment receipts and company seals, Chiu said.

Among the suspects who were investigated for fraud, money laundering, and organized crime by New Taipei prosecutors, three were detained, while the others were released on bail ranging from NT$10,000 to NT$50,000, according to the bureau.