More PIPC victims show up at NBI
More alleged victims of the Performance Investment Products Corp. (PIPC) went to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) yesterday and expressed their interest in filing criminal charges against the incorporators of the foreign exchange trading firm.
As this developed, Performance Foreign Exchange Corp. (PFEC) executive director Roberto Borromeo denied early news reports that their company is connected with PIPC or other members of the Performance Group of Companies.
“PFEC was acquired by the current stockholders on 2004 from Mr. Michael Liew and has since then been continuously providing its clients with the professional and efficient service as a foreign exchange broker. We reiterate that Mr. Liew has nothing to do with PFEC,” Borromeo said in a statement.
Lawyer John John Felipe of the Bugarin Law Office said he represents at least five alleged victims of PIPC, many of them business executives. He said they are willing to disclose their identities at the appropriate time.
He went to the NBI-Anti Organized Crime Division (AOCD) to prepare for the filing of large-scale syndicated estafa charges against Singaporean national Michael Liew, the PIPC’s owner; Cristina Gonzalez Tuazon, the company’s general manager; and other incorporators and agents whose names they have to verify.
“We would be filing a class suit against them since they all have the same interest and they would file the case against the same company. We intend to file the case today, Wednesday. We are also calling on other victims to come forward,” Felipe said.
They are also asking the NBI to issue a subpoena against Tuazon. The NBI received information that she is still in the country and was willing to talk to them but only over the phone. She was reportedly afraid to show herself in public.
They have also learned that apart from the criminal charges, the company might have also violated provisions of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Records allegedly showed that PIPC is a research company and is not authorized to engage in foreign exchange services.
Felipe said Tuazon cannot absolve herself of responsibility since she is one of the incorporators. Tuazon had solicited the assistance of the NBI in locating Liew.
He admitted that since Liew has already left the country, they have no other option but to run after the incorporators.
“We do not know if (Tuazon’s move to ask for NBI’s assistance) was a diversion tactic to put the blame on Liew or just a delay tactic,” Felipe said.
He added that the problem with the PIPC started when the international pyramid syndicate FrancSwiss Investment was exposed in the media and “we could no longer contact them in their office.”
Felipe said the victims were enticed to invest their money because they were made to believe that it would yield a sizeable profit.
But he explained that, “in the foreign exchange business, while it is easy to earn big it is also easy to lose big. In just one minute, the investor’s luck might change.”
Felipe estimated that since the PIPC began its operations in the country eight or nine years ago, about 2,000 to 3,000 people may have placed their money in the foreign exchange firm.
One of Felipe’s clients said he invested $20,000, which is half of the required minimum of $40,000. Another investor admitted that he put out $80,000. The PIPC reportedly promised a 12 to 15 percent annual interest.
“For sure, there are those who invested millions. Some of the investors are expatriates or executives but they are just embarrassed to come out because these are their savings. Some of them even came from prominent families in the Visayas or from influential families,” the investor said.
But he said the PIPC was not only concentrated on earning money, it also gave donations to improve the services of hospital such as the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) and helped sponsor badminton tournaments.
The investor said Tuazon is now reportedly sending out letters to investors encouraging them to “join forces” and hire a Hong Kong-based reputable law firm to hunt down Liew.
However, she also asked them to contribute $200,000 to $250,000 to finance the hunt.
The investor said there is a scheduled investors’ meeting at their
Meanwhile, the NBI Interpol Division said they are now looking for ways to freeze Liew’s account in a Hong Kong bank, which contains less than $2 million.
NBI Interpol Division executive officer Supervising Agent Dominador Villanueva III said their counterparts from Singapore informed them that Hong Kong authorities were able to temporarily block the transfer of funds from the Hong Kong bank to a bank in Tokyo, Japan, where Liew has another account, last July 12 but he does not know how long the block will remain in effect.
“We now have to check what is the appropriate protocol for the
They are also planning on asking their counterparts to check if Liew has accounts in other banks. He said they will coordinate with Anti-Money Laundering Council to check if there are any PIPC accounts in the
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