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Wednesday December 15, 2010
Multi-purpose kiosk scam exposed
KUALA LUMPUR: The latest gimmick by a dubious get-rich-quick company is to offer a multi-purpose machine at an investment of RM40,000 with the promise of RM2,000 monthly returns, said Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk T. Murugiah. “But the company disappeared after the third month,” he said.
A multipurpose machine is a touch screen ticketing kiosk for mobile phone credit reloads and airplane tickets. A victim Johari bin Mohd Din said he had lost RM35,800 in his attempt to venture into the multi-automated touchscreen kiosk business.
“The company operates in a professional manner, complete with various black-and-white documents like receipts and withdrawal application forms,” said the 44-year-old businessman at the press conference which was chaired by Murugiah at the MIC headquarters yesterday.
Johari said he was invited to attend a slick business presentation in 2007 at an office in Damansara. Impressed with the lucrative returns of RM2,000 a month, he signed up with the company. “However, I did not get any machine or the monthly returns. After two months, I went to the office to demand my money back. I was asked to sign a form and told to wait for a reply.
“They never got back to me. I met up with a few other victims and we complained to the various government departments,” said Johari. Murugiah said over 3,000 complaints were received by the various government agencies against get-rich-quick schemes.
He said the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) was monitoring the activities of dubious companies. “These companies will soon be sent to court and I have told SSM to freeze all the accounts of the firms,” he added.
Murugiah urged the public to obtain advice from government agencies such as SSM and the Public Complaints Bureau in the Prime Minister’s Department before making any form of investment.
