Court Orders KAPA Founder, Officers Arrested for Investment Fraud

The Bislig City Regional Trial Court in Surigao del Sur has ordered the arrest of KAPA founder and officers over investment fraud charges, multiple publications have reported.

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February 14, 2020 – The Bislig City Regional Trial Court in Surigao del Sur has ordered the arrest of KAPA founder and officers over investment fraud charges, multiple publications have reported.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said the court issued the arrest of Joel Apolinario, KAPA founder as well as its key officers. The charges are related to KAPA’s violation of the Securities Regulation Code.

SEC said KAPA has enticed the public to invest (called a love offering) in exchange for 30% monthly returns. Such transactions are illegal because soliciting investments from the public requires the necessary licenses from the SEC, which KAPA does not have.

KAPA argued that these are not investments, but rather religious donations. Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete, however, said that “the promise of returns negates the giver’s liberality that is the hallmark of every donation.”

In June 2019, KAPA had its assets secured by SEC after a court ruling and the order from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), who has the power to forfeit any assets related to illegal investment activities. At that time, SEC Chairman Emilio Aquino said it could not wait for the fraudulent investment scheme to crumble and the investors to suffer before they take action. Mr. Aquino is referring to how pyramid schemes normally collapse by itself once the members from the lower “levels” could not sustain the payouts to those above them or simply once no one wanted to invest anymore.

The frozen assets include those in bank accounts as well as insurance policies, cryptocurrency holdings, and other assets that are linked to Kapa. Records show that Kapa also owns luxury cars, sports vehicles, a helicopter, a hospital, a school, and other properties.

Crypto-related or not, the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission regularly released advisories about fraudulent investment schemes here.

Source: GMA News

This article is published on BitPinas: Court Orders KAPA Founder, Officers Arrested for Investment Fraud

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