After receiving a payout from a head-on collision, Queensland-based businessman Doug Wright wanted to invest the money. He came across an advertisement from a firm on Facebook, looking for investors and promising high returns on their investment.

Wright filled out the online form and included his contact details. That simple interaction would end up costing him $1 million.

Over five months, Doug Wright received returns on his initial investments until communication suddenly stopped. Credit: Ben Shipway

After receiving a call from an individual claiming to work for the firm, Wright was told his colleague would soon contact him to set up an account. Wright checked the company and tracked its investment returns before investing.

“After I saw how much the fund was returning, I asked them for a contract in writing,” he says.

Wright thought he was sending money to MCI, a legitimate investment firm based out of Poland. Little did he know that the scammers had copied web pages from MCI to scam people.

“I’d done my due diligence on what, I thought, was a reputable company. The fake website used by the scammers copied the MCI website, even had the same directors and photos,” he........

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