I have no idea why would people be willing to invest in a site run by a person like him.
People invested in a site run by a person like me. It's only a small stretch from there to imagine them investing in a site run by a person like him.
I think you were the reason (or at least your reputation) they were able to get so many people to invest in them. You had run JD so well and for such a long time that people almost assumed that someone running a dice site as DB with few issues for a short period would automatically be trustworthy.
They had a good sized bankroll prior to you getting involved (although this may have been "fake" aka their own money) and their large bankroll attracted others to want to join
EDIT: the solution would be to reopen JD
EDIT2: roughly how much were you able to make from running JD? I am sure it was enough so that it would be worth it to leave Canada