Taipei man was defrauded of 23.1 million yuan after clicking on the free sushi meal coupon ad, and his real estate was turned into gold

A former employee of a financial holding industry in Taipei City was defrauded of 23.1 million yuan by a fraud group within a few months because he clicked on an advertisement for free sushi meal coupons. He even mortgaged his house and exchanged it for 4.2 kilograms of gold. The Criminal Bureau warned that investment fraud has become more common in recent times. There has been an obvious change. The gangsters are no longer eager to ask for money. Instead, they adopt a "long-term maturation" strategy, by constantly giving out small gifts to take off the victims' guard. This cunning trap of "playing the long game to catch the big fish" makes people bankrupt without knowing it.

The Prevention Division of the Criminal Police Department pointed out that this case began in March this year. The fraud group arranged for Mr. Wang to check in every day through the LINE welfare group, and sent physical gifts such as thermos bottles, power banks, and shopping credits to build trust. After the two parties gradually became warm, the criminals began to promote "corporate medical plans" that claimed to have high rewards, and took the opportunity to find out the details of the victim's property.

When Mr. Wang ran out of cash, the fraud group further induced him to increase the loan amount for his property by 18 million yuan, and falsely claimed that the investment funds could be delivered in gold. Mr. Wang believed it to be true and bought a large amount of gold noodles and gave them to the foreign affairs officer who came to withdraw money. The other party also provided a three-party contract and receipts in a serious manner, making him think that it was just a normal financial management procedure.

It wasn't until August this year that the gangster again demanded the payment of 13.9 million yuan in taxes to settle the profit. Wang Nan was cut off by the other party because he was unable to raise funds, and he was shocked to realize that he had fallen into a scam. Police analysis pointed out that the current average victimization period for this type of fraud case is as long as four months, and the fraud group has prepared countermeasures in advance to even ask financial institutions’ questions, and even prepare fake project estimates for the victims to deal with the bankers.

Surprisingly, since Mr. Wang was once an employee of the financial institution, when he went to withdraw 1.2 million yuan from the counter, he exchanged warm greetings with his former colleagues, which actually made the employees lower their vigilance and successfully withdraw the huge sum of money.

The Criminal Bureau urges that having a contract, a group, or receiving gifts does not mean that the investment is legal. If a bank encounters a customer who suddenly withdraws a large amount, mortgages real estate, or purchases gold, even if the other party is familiar with financial operations and can produce documents, they must still strictly examine the flow of funds to prevent false information and human touch from becoming a breach of the fraud team's defense line. If the public has any doubts, they must call the 165 hotline at any time for verification.