TAIPEI: A 31-year-old influencer from Malaysia has been sentenced to six months’ jail by Changhua District Court for working as a scam syndicate runner in Taiwan.

Ady Hu, from Bentong, pleaded guilty to the charge, and was ordered to be deported after completing his sentence.

Hu went missing in Taiwan on 11 December last year. His parents lodged a police report and sought help from Bilut state assemblyman Lee Chin Chen to look for him.

A press conference was also held to trace his whereabouts.

Hu was later found to be in police custody in Taiwan after being arrested for working as a scam syndicate runner.

He was recruited by a scam syndicate as runner on 6 December, where a female victim was contacted via LINE by another member from the syndicate in the capacity as a sales representative, to invest in shares by paying subscription fees and penalty fee upfront.

According to the facts of the case, a woman from Changhua County who joined a group to invest in a “sure win” company forked out a total of NT$2.3 million (RM312,000) but later discovered that she had been scammed.

The woman sought help from the police where she was arranged to hand over NT$ 2 million (RM271,112) to Hu in December last year.

Hu acted as a staff from the investment company, tasked to collect the cash from the woman.

He was arrested by the police when he received the money from the woman at a café in Changhua County.

Hu, who sells products on Facebook and lives in Kuala Lumpur, was unaware that he was working for a scam syndicate.

He said he was provided free accommodation in Taiwan for both work and leisure.

Read:

1. Working for a scam syndicate, missing internet celebrity arrested in Taiwan
2. Another Malaysian duped by scam syndicate arrested in Taiwan
3. Malaysians, Vietnamese and Indians duped to work for scammers in Taiwan