Police Raid Turns Malaysia’s Ghost‑City Development into Scammer Stronghold
Forest City, an artificial island off Johor’s coast, was unveiled in 2016 by Chinese developers as a $100bn “dream paradise” that could accommodate 700,000 people. Ten years on, however, less than 1% of that promised population lives there.
In a sweeping police operation carried out in mid‑July, authorities raided 32 premises across the complex, arresting 335 individuals—including 309 Chinese nationals, 19 Indonesians, three Malaysians and four Myanmar residents—and seizing assets worth about one million ringgit ($245,000). The haul included 313 computers, 1,557 mobile phones, 17 laptops and ten modems.
Investigators say the seized operations functioned as two call‑centre hubs, one in a residential tower and another spanning five bungalows. They were used to run cryptocurrency‑facilitated investment scams and “love‑scams” targeting victims overseas.
Johor police chief Ab Rahaman Arsad said the authorities are cooperating with Interpol to track the mastermind behind the schemes. The police’s rapid response, however, was deemed “the only shocking thing,” residents and the arrested told the BBC.
Expert John Wojcik of TRM Labs describes the Forest City operations as the tip of a global scam industry that has professionalised in recent years. “These syndicates have dedicated recruitment teams, IT departments and money‑laundering specialists,” he said. Wojcik warned that the city’s vacuous grandeur – its modern infrastructure and international connectivity – creates a perfect facade for seemingly legitimate businesses to mask illicit activity.
The complex’s status as a “ghost city” has also drawn attention. Residents such as Kevin, who works in property sales for Forest City, claim they see scammers operating in “condominiums or serviced apartments,” yet many are indifferent, focusing instead on their jobs. Phillip, a tech worker who moved from Singapore, notes that “mortgage drama aside, you go from one in 20 to maybe one in five” in terms of active residents.
Despite being marketed as a hotbed for investment and tech innovation, Forest City’s vacancy has turned it into an attractive base for crime syndicates. A global network of scammers can embed itself behind the veneer of legitimate enterprises, making detection difficult and allowing them to wield considerable influence through the massive profits they generate.
