Two men who swindled over 400 people out of millions of euros by promising to invest their cash in Dubai property have been jailed for 3.5 years and banned from working as financial advisors for five years by a court in Amsterdam.

The court said Danny Klomp and Remco Voortman were guilty of fraud, money laundering and embezzlement in connection with Palm Invest, the property development firm they set up to invest in Dubai.
The public prosecution department had called for a five year jail term.
Both men plan to appeal and will not be jailed pending the outcome of that process.
Glossy adverts
Over 400 people put a combined €31m into Palm Invest, which was advertised in glossy television adverts, promising returns of 9%.
But most of the cash went on funding the lavish lifestyle of the founders. The prosecution claimed the duo were spending €35,000 a day in 2007. The money went on jewelry, clothes, watches, travel and cars. Cash withdrawals from their bank accounts totalled €900,000.
The scam ran from 2005 until police stepped in in January 2008.