All that glitters is not gold. Sometimes, it's just one big scam.
Last Nov. 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a cease and desist order (CDO) against EmGoldex, a company apparently based in Dubai and which recruits investors to buy gold online, in turn receiving huge bonuses for referring friends and associates.
"The SEC also filed two cases before the Department of Justice (DOJ) against related entities GIG and Prosperous Infinite Philippines Holdings Corp. (PIPHC)," reports Cecille Suerte Felipe in The Philippine Star.
EmGoldex invites Facebook netizens to invest in its “Pinoy Style Patak-Patak” scheme, promising huge returns on their investment. This is their scheme: "An investor who will put up PHP1,000 (USD$21.30) is promised profits from PHP5,000 (USD$106.50) to PHP10,000 (USD$212.99), while an investment of PHP35,000 (USD$745.48) will yield PHP180,000 (USD$3,833.54) to PHP360,000 (USD$7,668.25)."
The SEC — in cooperation with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Philippine National Police, and the National Bureau of Investigation — conducted an investigation on EmGoldex’s operations.
First off, they found out that the company head, Kevin del Mundo Miranda, allegedly built a fortune estimated at hundreds of millions of pesos by swindling overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), police officers and young victims through an online scam.
Miranda is described as "a jetsetter who tools around town
in a Ferrari." He and 6 other executives of EmGoldex (later renamed Global InterGold or GIG) — Ryan Manuit, Charles Juiz Padilla, Raahbel Ymas, John Rafael Calicdan, Jose Victorio Cajita, and Paul Alviar — face an initial two counts of syndicated estafa filed by two policemen.
The report noted: "The SEC said the companies violated Sections 8 and 28 of the Securities Regulation Code (SRC) for selling or offering for sale or distribution unregistered securities to the public and without a license, respectively. Upon conviction, each violation of the SRC is punishable with a fine of not more than PHP5 million or imprisonment of seven to 21 years, or both.
The SEC stressed that both EmGoldex and GIG are not SEC-registered corporations."
The SEC also added that "crimes committed in cyberspace and through the use of information and communication technology carry a higher penalty as provided under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012."
Photo: EmGoldex Facebook page
