Authorities in Kaohsiung have charged the principal figures of three companies who allegedly ran a financial scam in which they made NT$1.9 billion (US$57.3 million) in profit in just over a year by enticing people to invest money in a tie-in scheme involving the RCD Espanyol soccer club, which is a renowned team in Spain’s top flight, La Liga.
Public prosecutors yesterday indicted top executives of Kuanchou Asset Management Co, including owner Chen Hsiu-an (陳修安), 37, sales manager Chen Po-yen (陳柏諺), 47, and several business associates for financial fraud, money laundering and other charges related to violations of the Banking Act (銀行法), after arresting them earlier this week.
Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office officials said Kuanchou Co and its associates lured people with the promise of investing in shares of Power 8, sponsor of Espanyol which has naming rights on the team's kit and other endorsements, while some investors were offered business-class flights and tickets to watch Espanyol play against other La Liga teams.
The principals of Kuanchou Co claimed they had a business tie-in with Power 8, a gaming company registered in Costa Rica and with an office in Spain.
Kuanchou Co promotional brochures prominently featured the Espanyol club, its players and their stadium, which is based in Barcelona.
It has been reported that the operators of Kuanchou Co’s alleged scam also offered investments in Macau’s casinos and gold trading firms, promising profitable returns.
Officials said there were more than 400 Taiwanese who put up the money, as the operators of the scam made a profit of about NT$1.9 billion in just over a year, with many investing US$50,000 with the promise of being able to watch Lionel Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez, Cristinao Ronaldo and other stars in action in matches against Espanyol.
Authorities said the scam was created in collusion with a man called “Phillipe,” who police said was an employee at Power 8, and that “Philippe” collaborated with a group of companies in Kaohsiung, headed by Kuanchou Co.
They said the man in question could be “Philippe Capelle,” who is purportedly a manager at Power 8, which besides being sponsors of Espanyol also have deals with English soccer teams Everton and Fulham.
According to international media reports, the scam has been exposed as a devious financial operation used to swindle money and has been described as a “US$250 million ponzi fraud, selling shares to poorly protected investors in Taiwan, India, Hong Kong, Singapore and China.”
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
STAY AWAY: An official said people should avoid disturbing snakes, as most do not actively attack humans, but would react defensively if threatened Taitung County authorities yesterday urged the public to stay vigilant and avoid disturbing snakes in the wild, following five reported snakebite cases in the county so far this year. Taitung County Fire Department secretary Lin Chien-cheng (林建誠) said two of the cases were in Donghe Township (東河) and involved the Taiwan habus, one person was bit by a Chinese pit viper near the South Link Railway and the remaining two were caused by unidentified snakes. He advised residents near fields to be cautious of snakes hiding in shady indoor areas, especially when entering or leaving their homes at night. In case of a
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
ENERGY RESILIENCE: Although Alaska is open for investments, Taiwan is sourcing its gas from the Middle East, and the sea routes carry risks, Ho Cheng-hui said US government officials’ high-profile reception of a Taiwanese representative at the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference indicated the emergence of an Indo-Pacific energy resilience alliance, an academic said. Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安) attended the conference in Alaska on Thursday last week at the invitation of the US government. Pan visited oil and gas facilities with senior US officials, including US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and US Senator Daniel Sullivan. Pan attending the conference on behalf of President William Lai (賴清德) shows a significant elevation in diplomatic representation,
RSS