Focus Taiwan
Date: 10/19/2020
By: Liu Chien-pang and Ko Lin

Taipei, Oct. 19 (CNA) Seventeen suspects have been arrested for creating an investment scam that took millions of dollars from unsuspecting would-be investors, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said on Monday.

Liao Shui-chih (廖水池), chief of the CIB's 1st Investigation Corps, said at a press conference that police nabbed the suspects, including the ringleader surnamed Chiang (江), in separate raids carried out from Oct. 6-14 in Taipei, New Taipei, Taichung and Yilan County.

The group running the scam allegedly defrauded some 100 people in Taiwan, amassing nearly NT$100 million (US$3.48 million) in illicit gains since 2018 through an investment scheme involving cryptocurrency and precious metals, the CIB said.

Through a Facebook page that Liao created, his members would pretend to show off their earnings, posting stories of their lavish lifestyles in order to lure people into their business ventures, while promising customers that they would earn 6 percent-10 percent returns every month, investigators said.    [FULL  STORY]