Twelve investors in Shuozhou, North China's Shanxi Province were prevented from committing suicide at a local government building Sunday morning, after they attempted to seek government assistance to help them recover their investment, allegedly totaling 180 million yuan ($29 million).

The twelve assembled at the top of the building of the local development and reform commission to ask the government to arrest the head of the Shanxi Heli venture capital firm, which is suspected of running off with their money, according to a press release from the local government.

The statement added the investors were persuaded to come down from the building and to discuss the matter with local officials. 

"Over 10 middle-aged and elderly people were standing on top of the building and attempted suicide as they claimed they wanted to recover their investments after they said the company defrauded them. It is said that the company owner fled with their money in November 2014," a witness surnamed Li told the Global Times.

"They said that they have complained several times but nobody [from the government] was willing to help them … they said they just want their money back," Li said, adding that he was told that the money totaled 180 million yuan.

How the investors reached the top of the building remains unclear.

The press release added that the matter was turned over to judicial authorities in November who have ordered the arrest of four people. Three of them are in custody while the fourth named Ma Aibin remains at-large.

Ma is also an official of the commission and also one of the firm's shareholders, news portal thepaper.cn reported.

He was allegedly in charge of the investments, according to an arrest warrant from local public security bureau.