Malaysian police arrested 335 people in raids on two alleged international online scam syndicates operating out of the Forest City development in the southern state of Johor, adding to scrutiny of the project.
The syndicates were suspected of running cryptocurrency investment and romance scams targeting victims in China and Indonesia, Johor police chief Ab Rahaman Arsad said in a video posted on Facebook on Tuesday.
Those arrested included 309 Chinese nationals, 19 Indonesians, four Myanmar nationals and three Malaysians, ranging in age from 20 to 58, police said. Investigators believe victims were approached through messaging and social media platforms including Telegram, WhatsApp and TikTok.
The raids are the latest to draw attention to Forest City, a beleaguered $100 billion project built on a reclaimed island by Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings. Malaysian King Ibrahim Iskandar also owns a stake in the development that’s near Singapore.
Last week, Malaysian authorities ordered tech investor Balaji Srinivasan‘s Network School to cease operations over licensing violations while separately calling for investigations into allegations involving passport misuse and breaches of immigration rules.
Allegations circulated online that Israeli nationals were attending the school using second-country passports. Israeli citizens are generally prohibited from entering Malaysia, as the two countries do not have diplomatic relations.
The Forest City project has sought to attract technology companies and financial services firms after years of sluggish property sales.
Ab Rahaman said the raids had no connection to the Network School.
Authorities raided 27 apartment units and five bungalows on July 15, seizing 313 computers, 1,557 mobile phones and an SUV worth about 1 million ringgit ($245,000), according to police.
