'Investment firm' directors arrested over alleged R17m fraud

Two directors of a Port Elizabeth “investment firm” were arrested on Thursday with the Hawks saying the men had allegedly duped investors out of about R17m. 

Hawks spokesperson Captain Anelisa Ngcakani said: “It is alleged that from approximately June 2016 to July 2019 the duo illegally operated an investment company known as Helping Hand Investment (Pty) Ltd. 

“The two company directors allegedly recruited investors within Port Elizabeth and the surrounding areas.

“The investment period was a six to ten-year term and they promised a 15% to 45% return per annum.”

Ngcakani said the investigation also revealed that the suspects’ company was not an authorised Financial Service Provider and there was no record of an application from the company to be registered, reports HeraldLIVE.

The men are 29 and 31, she said. 

“The Hawks investigations further revealed that the total amount which investors deposited into the alleged illegal investment company amounts to R17m,” she said.

“These investments were allegedly used to pay monthly salaries to the suspects and their employees.”

The two company directors are expected to appear at the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court on Friday.