Land Investment Scam by "Angmoh"

I wrote in my blog on the 2 April 2009  warning gullible Malaysian investors to be wary of agricultural land plot for sale via MLM. Three high profile companies were operating in Malaysia.  These direct sellers set up impressive booths at shopping malls, exhibition centres and office complexes. They established their offices in high-end office complexes to create the good impression for the general public. They also participated in the National Accountants convention, Investors Convention and Fund Management Exhibitions in KLCC.

These direct sellers are well-dressed personnel and speak professionally. Their brochures and catalogues are in laminated art card and art paper with glossy folders and nice bags to entice gullible investors.

I was persistently invited by a learned person(ex-bank manager) to attend property investment talk by a Canadian-based company. I bluntly told him that was a scam.  Why should one put money in agricultural land in a foreign country, with the promise of  a high return upon conversion of the land to residential or industrial use. Where is the income derived from? Can an idle plot of agricultural land generates income for you?  Come on gullible Malaysian.  Yet they promised you return of up to 250% in three years time.

You can do the same investment in Malaysia and you get a proper land title under your control. There are plenty of opportunities and plenty of agricultural lands in the outskirt of Klang Valley that you can invest and I can guarantee you that after five years, the agricultural land will appreciate 30-50%.

For example, agricultural land in Dengkil, just south of Putrajaya, was priced at RM300,000 per acre in 2005. Now, the same plot of land is selling at RM600,000.

One acre of agricultural land in Sepang, Tanjung Sepat, Banting and Morib area was going for RM80,000 per acre in 2006. And this is freehold land. The same plot of land is now selling at RM150,000 per acre.  Ha! Remember the Tanjung Sepat high profile case?

If you think Malaysia is not good enough, fly to Australia to buy the land yourself. You can also convert the land use and make a huge profit. Why put your money in those scam?

Why must gullible Malaysian put money into this kind of scam by foreigners.  Don’t think that all “Angmoh” and “Kwei-looh” are good people. The Ponzi scheme, the Pyramid scheme and the MLM are the brainchild of the "angmoh".

After the UK land declared bankrupt, Profitable Plot is now in the news. Who is going to be the next in the headline?

Don’t be a victim.  Always ask this question “Where is the income derived from to pay you the retuns?” If the income is from other investors, this is definetly a PONZI scheme.  THERE IS NO EASY MONEY FRIENDS.

UK land scheme shock R. Nadeswaran The Sun 13 January 2011 citizen-nades@thesundaily.com LONDON (Jan 12, 2010): Many Malaysians have "invested" between RM100,000 and RM500,000 each in land in various parts of the United Kingdom, only to find out that they will not be able to make any returns on their investments. Actual numbers are hazy but it is understood that with the setting up of Profitable Plots Sdn Bhd (PPSB), an agent for UK land banking schemes, there have been a number of locals who were caught unawares. They were promised returns of between 250% and 500% after a few years but the titles to the land they are holding are not worth the paper they are written on. Although they legally own the land, they can do little with it as the land is situated in "green belts" or undeveloped areas which are protected from any form of development or agricultural land where no development is likely to be permitted. The authorities here have taken action against several firms promoting such schemes but have been unable to prevent them from operating in Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. Because such land is unlikely to be approved for development, they are bought at low prices and divided into smaller plots and offered for sale on the basis that when future development plans are approved, these plots will be more valuable. However, the UK Land Registry has warned that prospective buyers have been misled about the prospects of approval for development and this in turn "could lead them into thinking that they can sell the plots at an appreciated price when development applications are approved". Mike Westcott-Rudd, Head of Corporate Legal Services for Land Registry says it will register any application to register and issue titles to land as long as the papers are in order, but has no powers to prevent such sales. The Registry will not question the circumstances under which the land is bought or sold. "However, if documents are forged as in the case of a company which promoted such schemes in Singapore, the registry will assist the authorities in bringing the culprits to book," he told theSun. Authorities in Singapore prosecuted one company for using a forged document to promote the scheme. Forged Land Registry letters have been produced in some cases to suggest that there is official approval (by the Registry) but it plays no part in the planning approval process as this comes under the local authorities. On Tuesday, the Kuala Lumpur High Court upheld Companies Commission of Malaysia’s (CCM) declaration in October 2008 that Profitable Plots Sdn Bhd (PPSB), which is involved in land investments in the United Kingdom (UK), had contravened the Companies Act. CCM said in a statement that PPSB filed its application to the court through an originating summons on Jan 30, 2009. "In its summons, PPSB claimed that it was in the business of facilitating the sale of UK land owned by Profitable Plots Pte Ltd – a Singaporean incorporation," the statement said. However CCM's investigations indicated that the company not only coordinated and managed the process with buyers to ensure that they gained legal deeds on the land they bought, but also directly sold the land to these buyers which it was not authorised to do so. Furthermore, CCM said these buyers also had to sign a 20-year-option agreement that they will not object to any planning development close to their property. Despite the action in Malaysia and Singapore, similar schemes are still being promoted via the Internet and at private "investment briefings" and through marketing agents. UK land registry's Westcott-Rudd advised investors to seek professional or legal advice before parting with their money.