Kuala Lumpur: A teacher lost about RM1.13 million after she was duped by a Macau Scam syndicate member into believing that her vehicle was involved in a fatal accident and that she was engaged in money-laundering activities.
Kajang district police chief ACP Mohd Zaid Hassan said that the 49-year-old victim had received a call from a syndicate member disguised as a police officer last week.
“The victim was then ordered to open two bank accounts and to key in a phone number given by the suspect as a contact number of the accounts’ owner.
“The victim then transferred her savings into the accounts as directed by the suspect, purportedly for investigation purposes,” he said when contacted by Bernama, recently.
Mohd Zaid said that the victim had also taken out personal loans at several banks after being told to by the syndicate, resulting in losses amounting to RM1,132,475.
“Members of the public are advised to be alert with Macau Scam syndicates so that they will not fall for their tactics of deceiving victims by disguising themselves as officers from the police, banks, customs department and such.
“The telephone numbers used (by the syndicate) are indeed from the related agencies and the technique is called ‘spoofing’. Members of the public can also go to a nearby police station with any queries or doubts,” he said, adding that the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
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