JOHOR BARU: A 37-year-old local woman has lost over RM1.1mil after falling victim to a phone scam by an individual claiming to be a police officer.
Johor Police chief Comm Datuk M. Kumar said the victim, a company director, alleged that the scam began on 31 Oct at 3pm.
“The victim received a call from someone claiming to represent a delivery company, who informed her of a package in her name containing a chequebook and a bank token.
“When the victim denied any knowledge of the package, the call was transferred to a person impersonating a police officer to allow her to file a denial report.
“She was then connected to an individual posing as an officer, ‘Insp Harun,’ who claimed her Visa card was linked to fraudulent and money laundering activities,” he said in a statement on Saturday (Nov 23).
The victim was directed to transfer all her funds to another account for a supposed investigation by Bank Negara Malaysia.
“Out of fear and concern about facing legal repercussions, she transferred RM1,140,320 as instructed,” Comm Kumar added.
The victim only realised she had been scammed when she was asked to transfer more money. She subsequently lodged a police report on Friday (Nov 22).
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which carries a sentence of imprisonment ranging from one to ten years, whipping, and a possible fine upon conviction.
Comm Kumar urged the public to remain vigilant when receiving calls from individuals claiming to be police officers or enforcement agency personnel.
He stressed that the authorities would never request funds to be transferred to any bank account for investigative purposes.
He also encouraged the public to stay informed about commercial crime tactics by following the official accounts of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department on social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, under @CyberCrimeAlert and @JSJK PDRM, to avoid falling prey to scams.
