Manhunt on vs. 'investment scam' leader

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Law enforcement agents are now trying to locate the person believed to be behind an alleged investment scam in Mindanao after a local court issued an arrest warrant against the firm’s founder.

Supt. Mardi Hortillosa, spokesperson of the Cagayan de Oro City Police Office (Cocpo), said Monday both the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are conducting manhunt operations against Mark Steven Freeman.

Freeman is said to be the founder of the Freedom Traders Club (FTC), who is facing large-scale swindling charges, a non-bailable offense.

“Police officers who were serving the warrant of arrest for Freeman could not locate him when they went to his last known address,” Hortillosa said.

Hortillosa said they have already coordinated with other police and NBI offices in areas where Freeman was known to maintain residences.

If Freeman had already fled the country, Hortillosa said they will seek the help of the Interpol and the law enforcement agencies of countries where he might be hiding.

As founder of the FTC, Freeman was involved in the investment of “Ploutos Coin,” a kind of cryptocurrency or digital currency similar to bitcoin, and promised his potential investors huge returns.

Few days after FTC was launched at a mall here on July 8, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) posted on its website an advisory indicating that the entity is not registered with their office.

SEC has categorized FTC as a “forex” (foreign exchange) trading club using the Ploutos Coin as its “investment vehicle.”

“It is publicly announced that the price of [ploutos coins] will "skyrocket" after six months,” SEC said, referring to the promise of FTC to its potential investors.

Hortillosa was able to confirm that some of the FTC investors were retired and active police officers, although he did not mention any names.

During a committee hearing at the city council on August last year, Freeman denied his involvement in investment scams as he has at the time a Certification of Registration for the Ploutos Innovation Corp. to prove his business was registered.

But SEC-10 Director Renato Egypto said the document Freeman showed was not enough as FTC needs to have a secondary license to engage in investment activities.

As of this posting, it was not immediately known how much FTC investors had poured into Freeman’s company. (PNA)