An email trail of a carbon credit scam. Featuring Carbon-ex, 360 Invest Group, Carbon-Expert, and Colemans-CTTS

This is a story about how a pensioner was scammed into buying carbon credits as an investment. Miriam contacted REDD-Monitor in August 2014, to ask whether her 4,000 carbon credits were worth anything. She told me that 360 Invest Group had persuaded her to buy the carbon credits and that she’d paid the money to a firm of solicitors, Colemans-CTTS LLP, in Kingston upon Thames.

I told Miriam that unfortunately her carbon credits were not worth very much at all. She’d been scammed. I suggested she should report the details to Action Fraud.

Miriam recently sent a series of emails to REDD-Monitor asking for them to be posted to “help others not to make the same mistake”.

While this scam involved carbon credits, the best advice if you are cold called with any investment offers, is to put the phone down. Here’s what UK pensions minister Ros Altmann said recently about cold calls:

Reputable financial organisations will not call you out of the blue, so if someone contacts you about your pension or with offers of a pension ‘review’ I would suggest just hang up, or delete the email.

The sales pitch

Here’s part of 360 Invest Group’s sales pitch. REDD-Monitor wrote about 360 Invest Group in August 2013. An archived version of the company’s website is available here.

Miriam received this nonsense by email from 360 Invest Group in August 2011, with the subject line, “The best opportunity of 2011”:

In a market worth in excess of 188 Billion Dollars, demand for Carbon Offsets is rising dramatically due to companies such as Marks & Spencer, Jaguar Land Rover, Aviva & the Co-Operative, to name just four, committing comprehensively to carbon neutrality with their competitors following suit, this drive for demand is consequently pushing up the price of credits fast.

360 Invest Group have exclusive access to 35,000 VCS from the APX European Exchange at £4.96. These same credits are currently available on the UK Carbon Trading Exchange for £14.30.

To reserve an allocation or simply request additional information about this SIPP Approved project click here

Obviously, due to the limited availability, these credits will be available on a first come basis. In addition, the maximum purchase per client is 5000 credits.

All 360investgroup products use UK Lawyers and Banks.

The Carbon-ex account

Miriam first had to create an account with Carbon-ex. REDD-Monitor wrote about Carbon-ex in March 2013. Carbon-ex supplied carbon credits to 360 Invest Group, Carbon-Expert, MH Carbon and other companies selling carbon credits as investments.

From: info@carbon-ex.co.uk
Subject: Account created
Date: 31 March 2011
To: Miriam

0845 519 6142 • www.carbon-ex.lu • info@carbon-ex.co.uk

Dear Miriam,

Welcome to Carbon-ex! We can confirm your account has been set up and you are all ready to start trading carbon credits.

Your login details are:

Email: XXXX
Password: XXXX

Logging in to the website at: www.carbon-ex.lu/users/login will enable you to update your user details and view your portfolio. You will also be able to change your password in the User Details section of your account.

If you have any further questions please contact us on info@carbon-ex.co.uk.

Once again, welcome to Carbon-ex.

Kind regards,

Carbon-ex

Closing the sale: “Trust me! I’m the expert here!”

A few weeks later came a quick-fire email exchange started by Nick Taylor, Chief Trading Officer at 360 Invest Group. Most of the exchange below took place in less than two hours, in May 2011:

Nick Taylor ntaylor@360propertyinvest.com:
Hi

How are you today? All well I hope…

Are you free to take a call this afternoon, as I would like to discuss a possible investment for you in the Carbon project in Mongolia.

I await your prompt response.

Kind Regards,

Nick

Miriam:
PLEASE RING AFTER 4.15

Nick Taylor:
Are you wanting to invest in the project then?!

Miriam:
If one can trust China

Nick Taylor:
Trust me! I’m the expert here!

4.87 in, 10.50-12 expected exit price…

How much do you think you could invest if I give you til the end of May to settle a trade?

Nick

Miriam:
to the value of 4K

Nick Taylor:
OK. Can I allocate 1,000 @ 4.87 ( 4,870 ) + 0.5% comms ( 24.35 ) = Total: 4,894.35GBP

That is the smallest position available…

Mark said you are awaiting funds through a Probate, is that correct?

Nick

Miriam:
1000 shares is all i can afford

Nick Taylor:
OK, I can do that.

Are you happy for me to proceed with this??

Nick

Miriam:
yes,go ahead

The solicitors: Colemans-CTTS

Colemans-CTTS, the solicitors, handled the contracts and the payments for their clients, Carbon-ex.

From: “Nick Taylor” ntaylor@360investgroup.com
Date: 5 September 2011
To: Miriam
 
Miriam,
 
Please could you get the contract back to Colemans today and let me know when you expect to send funds?
 
Kind Regards,
 
Nick

From: Miriam
Sent: 05 September 2011
To: Nick Taylor
Subject: Re:
 
Just came back and found your e-mail.Will return contract and a cheque for 4K will pay the difference on the 15 09 Regards M

Taylor replied the next day: “OK that´s great, thank you!”

Olivia Jones at Colemans-CTTS confirmed that Miriam’s payment had arrived:

From: “Olivia Jones” Subject: RE: 1252061//Carbonex
Date: 26 September 2011
To: “Miriam”
 
Dear ,
 
The cheque’s have cleared and we have completed the deal, attached is the certificate, original documents will follow in the post.
 
Kind regards
 
Olivia Jones

Two weeks later, Nick Taylor sent an email with a link to a BBC news story:

From: “Nick Taylor” ntaylor@360investgroup.com
Subject: RE: News Link
Date: 29 September 2011
To: “‘Nick Taylor'” ntaylor@360investgroup.com
 
Hello,
 
Please click on the link below- I wouldn’t have my money with the Bank!
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15077344
 
Kind Regards,
 
Nick

Carbon-Expert

In February 2012, Miriam received an email from Carbon-Expert, a Marbella-based company that sold carbon credits to the public as investments. REDD-Monitor wrote about Carbon-Expert in April 2013:

By March 2012, Miriam was getting worried. First she wrote to Colemans-CTTS:

From: Miriam
Sent: 03 March 2012 11:10
To: Olivia Jones
Subject: Re: 1252061/XXXX/Carbonex
 
hello Olivia,I am sorry to trouble you,but I hope you could help:I had sent several e-mails to Carbonex.and never received a reply.Do you know how to get in touch with Nick or any others .They were supposed to keep me informed of progress and advise when to sale my shares I am a little uneasy Many thanks for your reply MVB

Oliver Jones at Colemans-CTTS wrote back and copied her email to her clients at Carbon-ex, but offered no further help:

From: “Olivia Jones” Olivia.Jones@colemans-ctts.co.uk
Subject: RE: 1252061/XXXX/Carbonex
Date: 5 March 2012 15:52:15 GMT
To: “Miriam”
Cc: “Tania Cleary” Tania.Cleary@colemans-ctts.co.uk, olga.gille@carbon-ex.lu, customersupport@carbon-ex.lu
 
Dear XXXX,
 
Thank you for your e-mail.
 
I have copied in my clients to your e-mail, who should be able to assist you.
 
Kind Regards
 
Olivia

Then Miriam wrote to Nick Taylor at 360 Invest:

From: Miriam
Sent: 11 March 2012
To: Nick Taylor
Subject: Re:
 
hi Nick ,I thought you were meant to keep in touch and from time to time to advise of progress with investments and when is it time to sell Please let me know all is well Miriam

Miriam received a reply from Kevin Hart, Chief Trading Officer at 360 Invest. Hart told her that Nick Taylor had moved to the USA.

From: khart@360investgroup.com
Subject: 360 Invest Group
Date: 12 March 2012
To: “‘Miriam'”
 
Hi Miriam,
 
Re your email below can you give me a call at your earliest convenience.
 
Many Thanks
 
Kind Regards

360 Invest Group disappeared later in 2012. Carbon-ex disappeared in 2013. Carbon-Expert is still in Marbella, and according to its website is still selling carbon credits to companies to offset their emissions. In 2014, Colemans-CTTS made a profit of £1.71 million and £3.3 million in 2015. In August 2015, the company was bought by Simpson Millar LLP.

Miriam lost a total of £23,000 to the scammers.
 

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