IPOH, May 27 — A female civil service retiree lost RM845,450 after being conned by scammers who impersonated Inland Revenue Board (IRB) and police officers.
Perak police chief Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said the victim, 74, received a call on May 9 when she was at home in Ipoh.
“The victim was told she had tax arrears from a company registered under her name in Melaka, and her call was then redirected to two ‘police officers’.
“One suspect who was impersonating a police officer claimed that a record check revealed that the victim was involved in money laundering and a drug smuggling case,” he said in a statement today, adding the other suspect, who claimed he was a ‘Datuk’ then instructed the victim to follow his instructions by reporting her bank account details and her movements.
“The victim then proceeded to deposit RM845,450 in stages into cash deposit machines to 14 bank accounts of different names from May 10 to 19 for the ‘review’ process, and she was given a month to sell her house for the review process and was advised not to report the matter to a third party,” he said.
Mohd Yusri said the victim only realised she had been scammed when she asked a friend for help to find a property agent to sell her house. The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
“The public is reminded to take precautions to avoid being a victim of such scams by ignoring calls or messages from unknown individuals.
“Be reminded that enforcement agencies in Malaysia will never call or threaten or offer ‘other solutions’, do check and confirm with the respective agency or department,” he said, adding the public can contact the National Scam Response Centre at 997 for assistance to avoid sustaining losses.
— Bernama
