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https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/31277222/scam-victim-lured-others-and-refuses-to-cry-foul/
Mark Gibson and Angela Pownall - The West Australian on April 6, 2016, 1:46 am
WA authorities have taken the rare step of warning the public about a man who has sent at least $3 million of his and other people’s money to West African scammers. Peter Melvin Kleinig, 65, became embroiled in the scam about eight years ago, sending his life savings to invest in a gold mining company. Police believe the former Esperance farmer then persuaded at least 25 people to hand over money for the overseas scammers. One victim, the late Fred Williams, sold three properties and lost more than $2 million at the urging of his friend Mr Kleinig. Acting Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard said Mr Kleinig was given repeated warnings over years that he was being duped but still believed he was about to reap $5.7 million. “It’s extremely sad that Peter Kleinig has lost his life savings and refuses to accept that he is at the centre of a fraud,” he said. “However, when the actions of a victim present a financial risk to other members of the community, authorities have a responsibility to step in to protect the public.” The Department for Consumer Protection yesterday entered an “enforceable undertaking” with Mr Kleinig in which he agreed not to solicit or accept funds from anyone for the Ghana scheme. Despite that, Mr Kleinig insisted that $5.7 million was about to be deposited in his bank account. “There’s just one final hurdle. I have to pay a transfer fee of $18,000,” he said. The scammers repeatedly ask victims to pay fees for a variety of reasons to access their profits and are believed to contact Mr Kleinig daily via telephone or email. Consumer protection officers believe the scammers could have got Mr Kleinig’s details from past shares or investments. They monitored money transfer services for possible scams and found out he was sending large sums to Africa. They confirmed he had no relatives or business dealings there and warned him of a likely scam. When Mr Kleinig’s activity continued for a year, officers visited him to no avail. Instead, he was by then getting others to “invest” in the scheme and became the department’s most prolific victim. In August 2014, WA’s major fraud squad met people in Esperance they believed had been scammed. The town had emerged as a fraud hotspot over two years with more than 30 suspected victims sending $720,000 overseas — some to fake lovers, others to the African scam. Mr Williams’ son Jim Williams believes the stress of the failed investment contributed to his father’s fatal stroke. “The whole thing of the guilt and the pressure, he lost so much money,” he said. “We told him it was definitely a scam because it was way too good to be true. “Peter’s got to be stopped. If he approaches anyone, just say no because it’s just a dead end trail.”
Major fraud squad detective Trevor Leach said he believed at least 25 people had given money to the scammers via Mr Kleinig. “I think (Kleinig) is feeling trapped in some ways that he’s taken money from friends and a lot of people he knows and he feels indebted to them,” he said. Mr Hillyard said if Mr Kleinig breached the legal undertaking, then the department would take the case to the Supreme Court for a judge to take formal action against him.
Soooooo how many Spam emails did you get this week????????
Mark Gibson and Angela Pownall - The West Australian on April 6, 2016, 1:46 am
WA authorities have taken the rare step of warning the public about a man who has sent at least $3 million of his and other people’s money to West African scammers. Peter Melvin Kleinig, 65, became embroiled in the scam about eight years ago, sending his life savings to invest in a gold mining company. Police believe the former Esperance farmer then persuaded at least 25 people to hand over money for the overseas scammers. One victim, the late Fred Williams, sold three properties and lost more than $2 million at the urging of his friend Mr Kleinig. Acting Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard said Mr Kleinig was given repeated warnings over years that he was being duped but still believed he was about to reap $5.7 million. “It’s extremely sad that Peter Kleinig has lost his life savings and refuses to accept that he is at the centre of a fraud,” he said. “However, when the actions of a victim present a financial risk to other members of the community, authorities have a responsibility to step in to protect the public.” The Department for Consumer Protection yesterday entered an “enforceable undertaking” with Mr Kleinig in which he agreed not to solicit or accept funds from anyone for the Ghana scheme. Despite that, Mr Kleinig insisted that $5.7 million was about to be deposited in his bank account. “There’s just one final hurdle. I have to pay a transfer fee of $18,000,” he said. The scammers repeatedly ask victims to pay fees for a variety of reasons to access their profits and are believed to contact Mr Kleinig daily via telephone or email. Consumer protection officers believe the scammers could have got Mr Kleinig’s details from past shares or investments. They monitored money transfer services for possible scams and found out he was sending large sums to Africa. They confirmed he had no relatives or business dealings there and warned him of a likely scam. When Mr Kleinig’s activity continued for a year, officers visited him to no avail. Instead, he was by then getting others to “invest” in the scheme and became the department’s most prolific victim. In August 2014, WA’s major fraud squad met people in Esperance they believed had been scammed. The town had emerged as a fraud hotspot over two years with more than 30 suspected victims sending $720,000 overseas — some to fake lovers, others to the African scam. Mr Williams’ son Jim Williams believes the stress of the failed investment contributed to his father’s fatal stroke. “The whole thing of the guilt and the pressure, he lost so much money,” he said. “We told him it was definitely a scam because it was way too good to be true. “Peter’s got to be stopped. If he approaches anyone, just say no because it’s just a dead end trail.”
Major fraud squad detective Trevor Leach said he believed at least 25 people had given money to the scammers via Mr Kleinig. “I think (Kleinig) is feeling trapped in some ways that he’s taken money from friends and a lot of people he knows and he feels indebted to them,” he said. Mr Hillyard said if Mr Kleinig breached the legal undertaking, then the department would take the case to the Supreme Court for a judge to take formal action against him.
Soooooo how many Spam emails did you get this week????????
