TWO WOMEN LOSE OVER RM400,000 IN ELABORATE PHONE SCAM

DUNGUN, Oct 15 (Bernama) --  A female teacher here lost RM254,360 after falling victim to a sophisticated phone scam, while in a separate incident, another woman, a senior citizen in Kota Tinggi, Johor, was duped of RM152,000 through a similar fraud.

Dungun Police chief Supt Maizura Abdul Kadir said the 40-year-old teacher received a call on Sept 4 from a suspect posing as an insurance agent, accusing her of making a false medical claim worth RM38,000. The call was then transferred to an accomplice impersonating a police investigator.

“The second suspect alleged the victim was involved in money laundering activities, citing 30 bank accounts under her name used for fraudulent transactions. The call was subsequently handed over to a third suspect pretending to be a deputy public prosecutor, who claimed to be delaying two arrest warrants issued against her. 

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Maizura said the victim claimed that the suspects also instructed her to provide all her bank details for further action.

“The victim realised she was scammed when she found all her funds missing, with nine transactions transferring money from her account to unknown accounts between Oct 3 and 13,” she said, adding that the victim lodged a police report yesterday.

Meanwhile, in Kota Tinggi, Johor, a 61-year-old woman lost RM152,000, also after being deceived by a phone scam.

District Police Chief Supt Yusof Othman said the victim received a call from someone claiming to be a delivery company representative, informing her of a package containing illegal goods registered in her name.

“The call was then transferred to another suspect impersonating a police officer, accusing her of involvement in money laundering,” Yusof said.

He said the victim was instructed to make payments as part of the investigation and made 10 fund transfers totalling RM152,000 to three different accounts between July 7 and 10.

“She was promised a refund once the investigation and trial concluded, but realised she had been scammed when the money was never returned despite her payments,” he added.

Both cases are being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.

-- BERNAMA