Malaysian police have arrested 14 Chinese nationals in Iskandar Puteri for involvement in a series of cryptocurrency scams, according to local media.

The arrests were made on Saturday 18th April, following two months of surveillance from local law enforcement.

Police commissioner Dzulkhairi Mukhtar told The Star that the group has been posing as successful Bitcoin investors before luring victims into handing over money on WeChat, while none of them were permitted to travel out of China.

“The suspects are aged from 20 to 30 with three of them having no valid travel documents,” he said when met by reporters at Iskandar Puteri police headquarters on Sunday (19th April).

“One of them would pose as a successful investor or a mentor while the rest will pose as investors before creating a group chat through WeChat and QQ application for each of their victims.

Johor cops nab 14 Chinese nationals over cryptocurrency scams – The Star Online https://t.co/5k65obLSvv pic.twitter.com/IQwdBKF5Qi — Ron (@ronmc1) April 19, 2020

“All of the suspects would then give a fake testimony to persuade the victim into investing.”

Police are continuing to speak to victims to assess how many damage the group has caused, with it being thought that Chinese citizens were being targeted.

The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which could lead to a prison sentence of up to 10 years and caning if convicted.

The group are also being investigated under Section 6(1)(C) of the Immigration Act which could bring a fine of up to $2,000, five years in prison and up to six strokes of whipping on conviction.