Two in court for 'involvement' in Ponzi scheme in which investors lost R2.8bn

Two men implicated in the R2.8bn BHI Ponzi scheme appeared in the Johannesburg specialised commercial crimes court on Monday. 

The Hawks said Sona Pillay, 54, was arrested on Friday after he attempted to flee overseas where he was refused entry and sent back to South Africa. He found the Hawks waiting for him at the OR Tambo International Airport on his return.

Michael Philip Adam, 55, handed himself over to the Hawks on Monday morning. 

Their arrests follow the conviction and sentencing last week of Craig Roy Warriner, 60, to 25 years' imprisonment on 206 counts of fraud and contravening the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act for operating an investment scheme without a licence. 

The two suspects are linked to the Ponzi scheme started in 2008 in which individuals invested R2.8bn with promises of generating profits exceeding 10% interest.

“In typical Ponzi scheme fashion, BHI Trust scheme started to falter and failed to keep up with the promised returns on investment,” Hawks spokesperson Col Katlego Mogale said.

The elaborate misrepresentation of the scheme led to massive losses by investors. 

Mogale said Warriner has been in custody since his arrest in August last year. It is expected that more individuals will be arrested in this case. 

The case was postponed until next Monday for a bail application. 

“We are pleased with the progress made and we are looking forward to the finalisation of the case,” head of the Hawks in Gauteng Maj-Gen Ebrahim Kadwa said.

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