Thread: The Marsdens (PIPs) Trial!

Hi All,

I've been in ROL for quite sometime and never contribute anything before so I think is time for me to to contribute to the club.

Here is the latest infor on PIPS, fresh from Oven!

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A couple was charged in a Sessions Court here with a total of six charges of illegal deposit-taking involving two Internet-based companies.

This is the country’s first online illegal deposit-taking case which involved 18 local depositors for RM650,000 that was investigated by Bank Negara.

British national Bryan John Marsden, 59, claimed trial to four charges while his Malaysian wife Phan Sew Ken, 52, pleaded not guilty to two such charges Tuesday.

The duo, who are directors of the New Mark Business Centres Sdn Bhd and PicPay Dot Com Sdn Bhd, appeared relaxed upon hearing their charges.

The two were said to have accepted deposits from the depositors without a valid licence under Section 6(4) of the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 to carry on banking business, finance company, merchant bank or discount house.

Marsden, who also represented for the said companies, was accused of committing the offences at Bandar Baru Nilai in Seremban between April 10, 2004 and July 4, 2005.

Phan, a former teacher, was alleged to have committed the offences at the same place and period.

If convicted, each accused can be fined up to RM10mil or sentenced up to 10 years’ jail or both under Section 103(1)(a) of the same Act.

Prosecuting officer Fahmi Ab.Moin, from Bank Negara, applied for a joint-trial saying that the case involved same witnesses. Fahmi said the prosecution would be calling 15 witnesses to testify in the trial.

Fahmi also offered bail at RM500,000 for each accused in two Malaysian sureties and asked the court to impound their international passport.

Pleading for lower bail, lawyer J. Kuldeep Kumar claimed that Marsden, a former project manager for KLIA and KLCC, and his wife had co-operated with the Bank Negara throughout the investigations of the case.

Kuldeep Kumar said both had been released on police bail of RM100,000 for a year with the condition to report to the Nilai police station.

“It is unreasonable to ask for a higher bail now,” he said.

He said Marsden had been charged at Seremban Sessions Court for 50 counts under the Anti-Money Laundering Act while his wife faced 48 similar charges there but could not higher bail imposed by the court and had to spend a year under remand.

He said Bank Negara had frozen his clients’ assets adding that investigating officer Abdul Halim Mohamed Dalib had affirmed an affidavit stating that RM8.34mil worth of properties and company assets belonging to the couple had been frozen by Bank Negara.

“I apply for this court to take into consideration the amount which had been frozen by Bank Negara as a surety to ensure their attendance in court,” he said.

He said the couple did not have money for bail and urged the court to set their bail at RM20,000 in one surety for each accused.

Judge Rozana Ali Yusoff set bail at RM400,000 in one Malaysian surety for Marsden while fixed bail at RM300,000 in one Malaysian surety for Phan. The couple failed to post bail.

Rozana also impounded their passports and set three days from May.

RM$8.34 assets frozen. What that worth about $2.4mil USD. Nice chuck of change.

I will let the membership now know by email (hotmail users will have a problem to get the email) , about this second trial!
For those of you who did not know, you can now see that Marsdens has not one, but TWO trials ongoing..

1. The trial we have been following -Criminal court.
2. And this second one that we just got to know about today, seems to be filed by BnM..

Seems like we will now have to cover 2 separate trials, where we were covering just one before.

admin

Kuldeep Kumar said both had been released on police bail of RM100,000 for a year with the condition to report to the Nilai police station.

Interesting - does this mean that when he was doing the whole Barry James bit he was out on bail? Meaning he was arrested as Pips was raided?

Originally Posted by nej

Interesting - does this mean that when he was doing the whole Barry James bit he was out on bail? Meaning he was arrested as Pips was raided?

Yes, its appears like this, during the time he was running halotto and 10by5.
Indeed to hear that its now two separate Trials..

We were just informed of the one about Money Laundry, but now it seems like we will also get updates from the other trail ahead in time on other things the new trial from BnM will bring..

admin

Wow, thank you for all the updates. This sounds like it could be quite a long drawn out process.

Thanks for the updates!

Thanks for this update!

So what does all that mean to us, the investors? I know we are not technically investors in PIPS but I use it for lack of a better term. Is there a chance we might get our money back?

If the Marsdens did scam us, then they deserve to be punished. If it is all just a big mistake, then they deserve mercy. We're just praying that justice is served and that they learn from this.

A lot of people have been severely injured by all of this and our prayers are with all of you. Fortunately we did not tie up our life savings or depend on living off what we made on PIPS but I know others have and for their sakes I hope this has a happy ending.

God bless,
J

Thanks very much for the update.