Bolier Room Callers Back In Bangkok

[george]

Scam calls back with a vengeance

THE operators of sophisticated tele-sales investment scams, which have cost Australian investors more than $400 million in the past three years, are back for another bite of the pie, the investment watchdog warned yesterday.

The notorious "boiler rooms" run from cities like Bangkok and Manila - officially known as illegal "cold-calling" operations - were scared off by legal action and publicity in 2001.

But Australian Securities and Investments Commission consumer protection director Peter Kell warned yesterday that the operators were returning to dupe naive Australian investors.

"These guys are not going to stay away for too long," Mr Kell said.

"They are going to come back for another bite. That's just the inevitability of scamsters - they are just getting smarter and smarter."

According to an ASIC report, the scams cost Australian investors about $400 million between 1999 and June last year.

The report said more than 7300 people nationally had contacted ASIC about a cold-calling experience since 1999, and most (about 80 per cent) had lost money. One victim lost $3 million and there are anecdotal reports of higher losses, although the average amount spent by investors who responded to an ASIC survey was $62,000.

In an attempt to stop the infiltration of boiler rooms, the commission has added the names of 24 organisations to its website blacklist, which contains the names of about 100 internationally based companies.

Since June, the commission had been receiving about 20 complaints a month about the fake companies offering bogus, unsaleable or overvalued shares.

"The amount of money extracted from consumers is too tempting for these operators to ignore, and it's clear they are re-emerging," Mr Kell said.

The difference this time around was that many of the companies were not based in Asia, as was the case in 2000-01.

They were based in the US, and many had access to the names of past victims.

ASIC is particularly concerned about an operation called Grace Morley & Associates, which has lost the funds of nearly 50 Australian investors.

Mr Kell warned that some of these people had been victims of earlier scams and were attempting to recover their losses.

"The temptation is to throw good money after bad in an attempt to get the original dollars back," he said. "But in ASIC's experience that is not the sensible approach."

--Agencies 2003-12-11

[dr_Pat_Pong]

They banged a lot up last time. Deported and declared PNG. Lotsa publicity about them, yet they found new punters.

[Axel]

I do get 3-4 calls a week, wonder where they found my contact.

My staff knows, if somebody asks for Khun ....xx...... using first and family name,

it cannot be a friend.

Some ladies asking for Khun Axel, I get strange looks by my staff

A very usefull reply: "Thanks for calling, I am very interested and maybe you can help me as just this morning my bank called me that I am far beyond my credit limit and yesterday my credit card was cancelled..."

This gets them off your back very fast, but new ones always coming.

[Johnny Moron]

The following is a true story.

A lady in Australia invested significantly with a Bangkok-based boiler room. Her "broker", a fine and very enterprising young American, kept her informed at all times about how well her pre-IPO investment was progressing. Then, in the middle of 2001, the much publicised FBI bust came.

The lady in Australia heard of this and naturally called her "brokerage" in Bangkok to find out more. Needlees to say, all calls went unanswered.

Soon after, the lady received an extemely apologetic call from her broker, saying that all her money had vanished and that he as a "professional" took personal responsibility for the loss. He added that he was now working for a new, "proper" company in America and would do everything possible to make back all the money (and more) in order to recompense for his prior failings. To do this however, he would need a further investment of several thousand dollars in a new "opportunity" which was guaranteed not to fail.

I leave it to your imagination to work out what happened next.

The point is this: if you are this totally stupid, might it not be best just to disconnect your telephone and enjoy a world of insular but infinitely safer naivety.

To pity or not to pity, that's the question.

[the gentleman]

time share, boiler rooms, they are all scumbags with no ethics, they are everywhere in Phuket (timeshare), I cant beleive people are that gullable...

They all should be deported, jailed and made to write 1 million letters of apology to each person they ripped off!!! SCUM!

[Dennis Pennis]

Bad people to be sure

Thing is, the Thai BGs down in Nana and Patpong are just as bad . Difference is, farangs fall in love with them and tell us all they're different .

Sad, ain't it? .

Love these icons

[penelope]

Regarding the boiler room workers :

It always fascinates me as to what the desperate effluent of society will do to make a living.Pathetic,mediocre lives.