littleroundman
09-29-2011, 09:54 AM
BOGUS off-shore investment schemes have scammed more than $93 million from about 2400 Australians, police have revealed.
The scammers operate from so-called boiler rooms and quickly move their operations and funds around the globe to avoid detection.
They cold call or lure their victims, usually retired professional people, through sophisticated websites, sometimes securing thousands or even millions of dollars from individual investors.
South Australian electronic crime chief Jim Jeffery said Australians were prime targets for the scammers' high-pressure sales tactics because of their high level of superannuation and other retirement savings.
'The scams are typically based offshore and use highly sophisticated websites to trick investors into thinking the investment offers are legitimate,'' Detective Superintendent Jeffery said.
The tally of losses has been established since the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) and police across the country set up a task force in April with the support of agencies including the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Victims identified so far include one person who was taken for $4.2 million, while the average loss has been $135,000.
Supt Jeffery said many victims were reluctant to come forward and the total losses across Australia were certainly much higher.
"I can assure you there is a lot more to come,'' he said.
One Adelaide man who lost $500,000, including funds invested by family members and friends, said he was duped into sinking large amounts into what turned out to be a disused coal mine in China.
He was promised a 100 per cent return over just a few months.
"I got scammed. It started with small amounts and just sort of grew and grew,'' the victim, Rob, said on Wednesday.
He first made contact with the scammers through a website and was then contacted by phone about a month later.
"They were very professional,'' he said.
"Every time I asked a question they had an answer for it. It sounded legit at the time.''
Rob said it was not until the time for him to be "cashed out'' came and went that he became concerned.
When he tried to contact the company, his calls went unanswered.
Rob said realising he had been taken for everything and would lose his home and any chance of remaining self-funded in retirement was "gut wrenching''.
But he said it was even harder to break the news to his friends and relatives.
"The first week was just awful. I had to face the people who were involved with me,'' he said.
"I'm a pretty hardened old guy, but I was emotional. I couldn't talk on the phone.
I thought I was one of the only idiots, but obviously there's more.''
Supt Jeffery said far from being "idiots'', those who fell victim to the scams were usually professional people who had retired and had the time and money to seek out investments.
He said identifying the crooks and pinpointing their location was extremely difficult and required police and the ACC to deal with overseas police, banks and regulatory agencies.
The scammers operate from so-called boiler rooms and quickly move their operations and funds around the globe to avoid detection.
They cold call or lure their victims, usually retired professional people, through sophisticated websites, sometimes securing thousands or even millions of dollars from individual investors.
South Australian electronic crime chief Jim Jeffery said Australians were prime targets for the scammers' high-pressure sales tactics because of their high level of superannuation and other retirement savings.
'The scams are typically based offshore and use highly sophisticated websites to trick investors into thinking the investment offers are legitimate,'' Detective Superintendent Jeffery said.
The tally of losses has been established since the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) and police across the country set up a task force in April with the support of agencies including the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Victims identified so far include one person who was taken for $4.2 million, while the average loss has been $135,000.
Supt Jeffery said many victims were reluctant to come forward and the total losses across Australia were certainly much higher.
"I can assure you there is a lot more to come,'' he said.
One Adelaide man who lost $500,000, including funds invested by family members and friends, said he was duped into sinking large amounts into what turned out to be a disused coal mine in China.
He was promised a 100 per cent return over just a few months.
"I got scammed. It started with small amounts and just sort of grew and grew,'' the victim, Rob, said on Wednesday.
He first made contact with the scammers through a website and was then contacted by phone about a month later.
"They were very professional,'' he said.
"Every time I asked a question they had an answer for it. It sounded legit at the time.''
Rob said it was not until the time for him to be "cashed out'' came and went that he became concerned.
When he tried to contact the company, his calls went unanswered.
Rob said realising he had been taken for everything and would lose his home and any chance of remaining self-funded in retirement was "gut wrenching''.
But he said it was even harder to break the news to his friends and relatives.
"The first week was just awful. I had to face the people who were involved with me,'' he said.
"I'm a pretty hardened old guy, but I was emotional. I couldn't talk on the phone.
I thought I was one of the only idiots, but obviously there's more.''
Supt Jeffery said far from being "idiots'', those who fell victim to the scams were usually professional people who had retired and had the time and money to seek out investments.
He said identifying the crooks and pinpointing their location was extremely difficult and required police and the ACC to deal with overseas police, banks and regulatory agencies.