NILAI: A 57-year-old mechanic here lost more than RM920,000 after he was duped into investing his money into an online investment scheme.
Nilai police chief Supt Abdul Malik Hasim said the man fell prey to the scam after he saw an advertisement on Facebook on Sept 2.
"The victim had come across this share scheme investment under AE Online Invest on Facebook and decided to make some queries.
"An individual then contacted him and briefed him on the workings of the scheme,” he said in a statement Friday (Dec 20).
Supt Abdul Malik said the victim, impressed by what he was promised, decided to go ahead to invest his savings.
He then transferred RM923,350 into 10 different accounts via 14 transactions.
"But when the victim decided to withdraw some of his so-called profits, he was told that he would need to invest another RM400,000 before he could do so.
"The victim then realised that he had been scammed and lodged a report early today," he said.
Supt Abdul Malik said the case was being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which carries a jail term of between one and 10 years, whipping and a fine upon conviction.
He advised those planning to make online investments, especially schemes that offered unusually high returns, to check with the authorities or Bank Negara Malaysia before investing.
The public can also call the police’s CCID Scam Response Centre at 03-2610 1559 or 03-2610 1599 for additional information.
