KUALA LUMPUR – The police have confirmed that further arrests will be made soon in connection with the Mobility Beyond Imagination ponzi investment scam, known as MBI Investments, which is based in a neighbouring country.
Bukit Aman Anti-Money Laundering Investigations (AMLA) Division Head, Datuk Muhammed Hasbullah Ali, said that the ongoing investigation has uncovered new evidence linking more individuals to the syndicate.
He explained that the scheme has been operating for several years and is one of the most active cross-border fraudulent investment schemes.
“Most victims began coming forward to file police reports after realising their investments were yielding no returns, and they began to notice the organised and deliberate fraudulent elements behind the scheme,” he said, as reported by Sinar Harian.
Yesterday, the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Razarudin Husain, confirmed that eight individuals had been arrested, and assets worth RM3.17 billion had been seized in connection with the Ponzi scheme. The MBI Investments scam, based in a neighbouring country, is said to involve a complex web of fraudulent activity.
The eight detainees include seven men and one woman, among them two entrepreneurs and two lawyers, each holding the title ‘Datuk,’ aged between 44 and 62 years.
The authorities dismantled the fraudulent investment operation through the arrests and the confiscation of assets worth RM3.17 billion, suspected to be tied to the Ponzi-like MBI Investments scheme from the neighbouring country.
Tan Sri Razarudin Husain noted that the arrests took place on 20 March as part of Op Northern Star, led by the Anti-Money Laundering Investigations team (AMLA) and the National Police Chief’s Secretariat (USKPN).
The operation was carried out through cross-border action based on information from Interpol’s Red Notices.
In August last year, Tedy Teow Wooi Huat, the founder of the MBI Group, was extradited from Thailand to China to face fraud charges.
Teow had been arrested by Thai authorities in 2022 after his visa was revoked. He is accused of orchestrating a pyramid scheme, deceiving investors, and operating a multi-level marketing scam.
In Malaysia, the authorities have frozen 91 bank accounts linked to MBI Group International, totalling RM177 million. Bank Negara Malaysia has also flagged MBI as a company involved in a suspicious financial scheme. – April 12, 2025