Investors of the VaultAge Solution cryptocurrency scheme have decided to move to court against its defunct CEO and owner Willie Breedt, attempting to recover around 277 million rands (almost $17 million).
Reported by local publication News24 on Wednesday, investor Annette Veldsman along with Gordon Kayser of the legal firm GTA Kayser Attorney in Pretoria are meeting advocates to file a class-action lawsuit against the investment scheme and its owner.
“We aim to have the application where we will seek relief from the court, before the High Court at the end of the week,” Veldsman told the publication.
Though the exact number is not known, it is feared that over 2,000 South African investors had invested in VaultAge with assurance to purchase cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin . However, now the fund seems to have closed with the founder on run.
Stopping communications and closing doors
Worries gripped the investors when Breedt broke off most of the personal contact with them and fled to Mozambique in December calling it a holiday.
The next month, he closed down the offices of VaultAge and moved from Featherbrooke Estates in Krugersdorp to the well-known Marina Martinique Estate in Aston Bay near Jeffreys Bay.
Though in an odd email he assured the investors that the funds are safe and all of them will be repaid, none of them actually saw a single penny.
Later Breedt even told the local publication that he will initiate by refunds from May 30, however, none of the investors hear anything from him.
The investors also got cautious as an investigation by them revealed that one of Breedt's accounts which previously held $3.15 million is now empty.
Notably, another criminal case is going on against Breedt for allegations of falsifying a proof of payment document sent to an investor.
