SINGAPORE - Five men said to have been involved in bogus investment schemes promising quick returns were charged between April 12 and April 15.
The police said on April 15 that Muhammad Muniruddin Mohamed Khairuddin, 38, Osman Japar, 52, and Muhammad Nabil Fatin Osman, 29, were allegedly linked to a case in which 47 people were purportedly duped into investing in these fraudulent schemes between Oct 15, 2018 and Feb 26, 2019.
They are also said to have been involved in offering the fake investment schemes to four more people between Nov 27, 2018 and Jan 17, 2019.
Muniruddin, sole director of Bill’s Finanze Corporation (BFC) and former shareholder in Smartfunding (SF), faces two charges for his involvement in the fraudulent schemes for consenting to BFC making offers of securities without the required prospectus.
Osman, the chief trader of BFC and shareholder of SF at the time of the offences, faces five charges for his role in the schemes, while Nabil, then the chief executive officer of BFC, faces four.
A check on the business registry showed both Osman and Nabil are no longer associated with any companies.
The last two men, Osman Mohamed Zin, 61, and Muhammed Nasir Salamun, 59, were both charged with failure to use reasonable diligence in the discharge of their duties.
Osman Mohamed Zin had served as BFC’s director from Nov 17, 2017 to March 11, 2019. Nasir had served as director of the firm from Nov 7, 2018 to May 7, 2019.
The police said on April 15 that between March 2018 and May 2019, BFC had purportedly offered two investment schemes in local small and medium-sized enterprises.
BFC promised investors returns of 45 per cent for investments over six months, and 104 per cent for investments over a 12-month period.
The police said that BFC allegedly used the investments to repay the investment and promised returns of earlier investors, as well as to fund trading activities on FXPrimus, an overseas online trading platform.
“BFC is also suspected of failing to lodge or register any prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore and making the offers of the two investment schemes to the investors without the requisite prospectus,” it added.
Between May and September 2019, some of the men had used another company, Smartfunding (SF), to offer a scheme that would allow investors to invest in two local firms.
But the money raised from investors was allegedly misappropriated, the police added.
Osman purportedly misappropriated $367,973 meant for investments into two companies sometime in May 2019, and then misappropriated another $804,464 in June 2019.
Nabil allegedly deceived a man that his money would be invested with BFC, and the man transferred $199,778 to Nabil’s bank account.
The police added that those found guilty of fraudulent trading can be fined up to $15,000, jailed for up to seven years, or both.
Company directors who are convicted of failing to exercise reasonable diligence in the discharge of the duties of their office can be fined up to $5,000 or jailed for up to 12 months.
Those found guilty of criminal breach of trust can face up to seven years’ jail, a fine, or both. Those found guilty of cheating can face up to 10 years’ jail, a fine, or both.
Companies or people found guilty of making offers of securities without prospectus can be fined up to $150,000, jailed for up to two years, or both.
