MIRI, July 3: A female civil servant lost RM200,000 after being deceived by a phone scam posing as officers from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the police.
Miri district police chief ACP Mohd Farhan Lee Abdullah said the Miri Commercial Crime Investigation Division (BSJKD) received a police report on the matter today.
According to the report, the victim received calls from the numbers 011-72650791 and 017-4525736, during which the caller claimed she was under investigation for money laundering.
“The victim denied any wrongdoing, but the scammer insisted that her personal banking details had been misused, and claimed her bank account was involved in suspicious transactions,” Mohd Farhan said.
To make matters worse, the victim was manipulated into believing she needed to assist in an investigation to “trap” a bank officer allegedly involved in the fraud. The scammer convinced her to take out a personal loan of RM220,000 and transfer it to an account under the syndicate’s control.
“The victim only realised this was a fraudulent phone scam call when she was informed by the bank that the money of RM200,000 was not in her bank account,” he said.
The case is now being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code, which carries penalties of one to ten years’ imprisonment, whipping, and a fine for cheating-related offences.
“The public is advised to always be alert and not easily believe in investment advertisements that promise high profits in a short period of time. Investment status checks can also be made to Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) through http://www.bnm.gov.my/financialconsumer-alert-list while to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) through http://www.sc.com.my/regulation/enforcement/investor-alerts/sc-investoralerts/investor alert-list.
“This is important to know information about the investment involved in whether there is permission to operate an investment business or to scam money from people,” Mohd Farhan advised.
Victims of scams or cyber fraud are encouraged to immediately contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997, especially if a transaction has just been made to a suspected syndicate account.
For added precaution, members of the public can check phone numbers and bank account details at: http://semakmule.rmp.gov.my.
Miri district police chief ACP Mohd Farhan Lee Abdullah said the Miri Commercial Crime Investigation Division (BSJKD) received a police report on the matter today.
According to the report, the victim received calls from the numbers 011-72650791 and 017-4525736, during which the caller claimed she was under investigation for money laundering.
“The victim denied any wrongdoing, but the scammer insisted that her personal banking details had been misused, and claimed her bank account was involved in suspicious transactions,” Mohd Farhan said.
To make matters worse, the victim was manipulated into believing she needed to assist in an investigation to “trap” a bank officer allegedly involved in the fraud. The scammer convinced her to take out a personal loan of RM220,000 and transfer it to an account under the syndicate’s control.
“The victim only realised this was a fraudulent phone scam call when she was informed by the bank that the money of RM200,000 was not in her bank account,” he said.
The case is now being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code, which carries penalties of one to ten years’ imprisonment, whipping, and a fine for cheating-related offences.
“The public is advised to always be alert and not easily believe in investment advertisements that promise high profits in a short period of time. Investment status checks can also be made to Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) through http://www.bnm.gov.my/financialconsumer-alert-list while to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) through http://www.sc.com.my/regulation/enforcement/investor-alerts/sc-investoralerts/investor alert-list.
“This is important to know information about the investment involved in whether there is permission to operate an investment business or to scam money from people,” Mohd Farhan advised.
Victims of scams or cyber fraud are encouraged to immediately contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997, especially if a transaction has just been made to a suspected syndicate account.
For added precaution, members of the public can check phone numbers and bank account details at: http://semakmule.rmp.gov.my.