This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has warned against a hoax email from an investment lawyer based in the United Kingdom claiming to have obtained $64 million belonging to people who had invested in the “Ponzi” Wattle investment scheme.
ASIC’s executive director of consumer protection Greg Tanzer said the bogus an email sent to people promised a share in millions of dollars lost years ago in the “Ponzi” Wattle investment scheme.
In the email (copied below), Richard Briggs, an investment lawyer based in the UK claims in the email to have obtained $64 million belonging to people who had invested in the former Wattle investment scheme that ASIC closed down in 1998.
Tanzer said the email bears all the hallmarks of a typical advance fee fraud, where promises are made to unsuspecting people in order to extract various fees from them or, worse still, gain access to their bank accounts.
“Of course, the victims will never receive any money.
“This case is a particularly repellent example of how low fraudsters will sink to exploit others. The Wattle scheme was one of Australia’s worst investment frauds, involving nearly 3,000 people and funds of some $200 million,” he added.
In 1998, the chief promoter of the Wattle scheme, Geoffrey Dexter, was sentenced to jail for 10 years, and ASIC also successfully prosecuted many of his lieutenants.
Promoted heavily through social networks, Wattle was a classic illegal ‘Ponzi’ investment scheme that promised outrageously high investment returns, supposedly at no risk.
After ASIC took action against this fraud, qualified professional liquidators were appointed by the Courts to take control of the scheme’s assets as well as the assets of Wattle’s chief promoter and architect Geoffrey Dexter.
“To suggest that there’s money from Wattle located offshore is a cruel hoax against those who lost money and a fraud against anyone who may think they can access these fictitious funds.
“I have contacted Mr Dexter’s trustee in bankruptcy and the liquidators of the companies associated with the Wattle scheme, and they confirm that no money went to London or Panama accounts, as suggested in the email. In addition, ASIC conducted its own extensive investigations at the time and found no evidence of any funds being invested,” he added.
The ‘spam’ email, brought to ASIC’s attention this week, was sent indiscriminately to people around the country.
“I would encourage people with any information to help identify the person involved, or source of this cruel hoax, to come forward. These people usually conceal their real location and keep themselves in countries where the rule of law may be weaker or where international collaboration is not a high priority. Our efforts are best used by warning people that the claims are false.
“ASIC has thanked the man who reported this email to us through our ‘Pie in the Sky’ Awards, an annual competition to identify the most outrageous financial scheme of the year. This entry will certainly be a strong contender. ASIC also maintains a list of illegal investments closed down on our FIDO website at www.fido.gov.au,” Tanzer added.
By Kathryn O’Meara
The full text of the hoax email reads as follows:
First I must apologies for intruding into your private email address: Knowing the fact that we do not know or have meet each other. It is due to the urgency from my clients that I am writing you and I want you to read through my letter with great zeal to participate in this business and I promise you that your involvement will not be regretted.
I am Richard Briggs, an investment lawyer based in the United Kingdom of Wattle Group Investment which is an investment scheme company that raised more than $160 million from about 2700 investors across Australia carrying out its normal duties until 2001 when the Australian Securities and Investment Commission closed down the scheme because it was not paying its clients the proceeds of their investments as agreed and there was no trace of investment of the monies collected from its clients to any Australian Bank or any bank in the world.
You can confirm the above from www.moneymanagement.com.au/articles/ae/0c004cae.asp.
The funds made from the Investment Scheme were invested in an investment account with a bank here in London and the funds were deposited in the investment account with a Panama cooperation as the beneficiary. The sum of money currently in the investment account is $64m (Sixty-Four million United States dollars).
The sum includes accumulated interest. I have been mandated by my clients of Wattle Group to find a neutral partner to work with me and ensure that the funds are put into another banking system for further investments. Therefore I am contacting you to assist my clients in receiving the funds in question as the beneficiary through the banking system for numerous investments projects we shall both manage.
I have made well established contact with a trust firm here in London responsible for Change of Investment Ownership that would help change the beneficiary of the investment bank account legally to a new beneficiary and also help in transferring the funds to a new beneficiary bank account.
For your assistance we are willing to offer you 20% of entire funds in the investment account and will invest a major part of the remaining funds in investment projects we shall both manage in your country. There is no risk involved in this business transaction.
The process involved to change the beneficiary of the investment account to your name as the new beneficiary will be achieved legally. In conclusion, if you are willing to assist us in achieving our goal please indicate that in your reply message to me via email or via fax to +44 87……. and I will furnish you with more details on how we shall proceed.
