Construction of a greenhouse project in Kazakhstan took a nasty turn for Gakon this summer. In a Dutch TV show on internet swindlers, journalist Kees van der Spek visited the Dutch greenhouse builder in connection with a 'mysterious mega fraud'. A Canadian middleman swindled Gakon out of 550,000 euros, the company's sales director Olaf Mos said in the broadcast, which aired November 11.
In order to fund construction of the project in Kazakhstan, Gakon had to borrow 105 million euros. It turned out the project was commissioned by someone from Iran, which made borrowing from a Dutch bank impossible due to international sanctions. Through a Canadian middleman, a bank in Bahrain was found.
This 'renowned bank broker' turned out to have swindled Gakon out of 550,000 euros. Olaf then thought of a ruse to lure the middleman to the Netherlands, where Kees van der Spek and his TV show helped get him arrested. The Canadian wasn't prosecuted, however, and has probably left the country. Olaf says he still hopes to get some of the money back.
Watch the broadcast here (in Dutch). The item with Gakon starts after the 9-minute mark.