By Adekunle Sulaimon
Jamaican Olympic sprinting champion, Usain Bolt, on Thursday, lost $12 million in his account with an investment company, Stocks and Security Limited, to hackers.
The track star’s lawyers said they are ready to file a lawsuit if that will make it possible to recover the lost money that mysteriously disappeared from Bolt’s account.
According to a statement from Bolt’s lawyers, it read, “The account was part of Bolt’s retirement and lifetime savings.
“It’s distressing news for anyone, and certainly in the case of Mr Bolt, who established this account as part of his private pension,” Gordon said on Wednesday.
“We will be going to court with the matter” if the company does not return the funds,” his lawyer, Linton P. Gordon, told Fortune magazine over the phone.
“It is a grave disappointment, and we are hoping that the matter will be resolved in a way that Mr Bolt will recover his money and be able to live in peace,” he added.
Reacting to the development, Stocks and Securities Ltd said in a statement on January 12 that it learned of the fraudulent activity by a former employee and had alerted law enforcement to the situation.
It also said that it had taken measures to secure customers’ assets and tighten protocols.
A separate statement released on Monday by the Jamaica Constabulary Force said the “alleged fraudulent activities at SSL that are said to have affected the accounts of Mr Usain Bolt and other individuals” are being looked into by those teams.
Meanwhile, On Tuesday night, Jamaica’s Finance Minister Nigel Clarke claimed that SSL had committed “alarming and evil fraud” and promised to “bring all perpetrators to justice.”
The Associated Press reported that Mr Bolt’s account with the company was created to act as a pension for both of his parents and the eight-time Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter.
Source: The Punch
