I didn’t know about the wire transfers & that’s great, but this doesn’t help him get his money back. If others are correct and this has happened to multiple people, it’s disturbing.
I think your post is unclear. Do you currently have a non-O? What do you mean by “convert”? Extend? Switch from marriage to retirement or visa versa or something else entirely?
How many times do we need to say that he did not say “land”. One of the options for an LTR is to invest in “real estate”. That includes condos, which are perfectly legal, and common, for farang to buy.