Chaing Mai Investment Scam(?) - Advice Plz

[onlooker]

No names. But there is a Chiang Mai based web hosting & design company also runs an online gold exchange and an online private profit sharing program. The profit sharing program was designed to share the returns from the gold exchange. Investors paid money in to help build reserves of e-gold that could then be traded by the company. The fees on these trades were then slip between investors. Initially all went well, but over the course of the last 10 months the vast majority of the investors, who between them have put in around US1 million haven't seen any physical returns.

Whilst money was being invested in the profit sharing company, the parent company's own accounts show that the farang director of the company and his Thai family were paid over 5 million baht, whilst income for the parent company was derived almost entirely in loans from the profit sharing program i.e from money invested by people like me in the hope of seeing an above average return.

I have a US2000 or so in there - not too much, many others ( farang & Thai) have far more. I've given up all hope of making a profit but would appreciate any advice regarding a good law firm to turn to for a legal opinion / collecting monies owed. Or is there a Thai Consumers Association one can make a formal complaint to? I have the address of the Crime Suppression Division in Bkk but if there's a local branch in Chiang Mai or if anyone has an email address for the main office that would be handy. The newspapers are the obvious choice but The Nation & Bkk Post aren't particularly crusading and Thai papers would only be interested if enough Thais were being ripped off.

For anyone into HYIPs and alternative investments you'll find threads regarding the company on many specialised discussion boards

[cmsally]

I haven't got a clue about this but a quick search and I think I have got the picture.

It actually comes up on a Thai forum and there is a pretty good piece of advice on there, which is to go to the Aeyagarn Changwat (sorry can't think what the Eng equivalent is) with all your paperwork and ask what your options are.

[Loaded]

I can recommend this solicitor:

Ajarn Sanyalux LL.B. (Thammasat), LL.M. (Thammasat) Ph.D.(candidate - Thammasat)

30 Soi Chumpee Sirimangkalachan Rd.

053 216 0101

018173150/019989222

Sound as a pound. Hard working, professional and honest (rare for a Thai solicitor)

[engineer]

Mr. Kumombo Banjanga

President African National Bank

Bukino Faso 20115

Africa

Greetings to you kind Sir .

You name was given to me in confidence by a mutual business contact so I know that I can rely on your honesty and integrety.

I am the accounts Manager at the ANB in Bukino Faso and currently there is an account in my department where the owner is deseased . The balance is $ 20.000.000 and he has no heirs or family . If you are willing to let me transfer this balance to your account I will give you 60% of the value of the amount after transfer . Please provise me with all your personal information and dont forget to include your passwords to your ATM cards .

This is not an internet scam by the way . Be wary of people who contact you online sir . 50% of the profits in my country will be donated to charity.

Wishing you peace and happiness kind sir.

[Wizzard of Oz]

onlooker,

What is "e-gold". And why did you invest real money for a company to trade "e-gold"?

[Greenside]

onlooker,

What is "e-gold". And why did you invest real money for a company to trade "e-gold"?

Wiki article

[onlooker]

The investment wasnt directly in Thai Gold Exchange it was in The Investors Corner,a profit sharing program run by the parent company, Asianpay.com, which itself is owned by an Italian guy in Chiang Mai. It did have good results this time last year, but from early 2007 onwards it became clear it was a bit dodgy. Thai Gold Exchange is now owned by another company Asian Digital E-Currency, which also happens to have the same shareholders as Asian Pay & Thai Gold Exchange but denies having any liability to anyone who is owed money by either of those companies. hence my desire to have monies owned refunded as emails from myself and other 'investors' go unanswered now and phone calls to the office are cut off as soon as awkward questions are asked.

[cmsally]

If the Thai examples of these pyramid schemes are anything to go by, when the dirty stuff starts to hit the fan, those in charge tend to flee the scene faster than the proverbial bus drivers. So if you have the opportunity better to try and collect your money sooner rather than later.

I know what I would do, but its probably against forum rules to go into detail.

[stateman]

I haven't got a clue about this but a quick search and I think I have got the picture.

It actually comes up on a Thai forum and there is a pretty good piece of advice on there, which is to go to the Aeyagarn Changwat (sorry can't think what the Eng equivalent is) with all your paperwork and ask what your options are.

Aeyagarn Changwat = Provincial Prosecutor, similar to a DA in the US.

อัยการ จังหวัด

As the name implies, there is one in every province.