SIBU: A hair stylist found herself RM900,000 poorer after she was misled into believing that her bank account was used for money laundering.
The unfortunate ordeal happened on Oct 17 when the woman in her late 60s, received an unexpected phone call from a person claiming to be Insp Koo from Perak Contingent Police Headquarters (IPK).
The inspector alleged that her bank account was implicated in money laundering activities by an unidentified individual.
Sarawak Police Commissioner Datuk Mancha Ata said that the unsuspecting woman was then directed to open a new bank account and transfer all her money into the new account, which purportedly would be monitored by Bank Negara Malaysia.
“Acting on these instructions, the victim initiated the process by opening a new account at a local financial institution, making an initial deposit of RM2,000.
“She then transferred RM900,000 from her existing personal bank account to the newly established account, as per the suspect’s directives.
“Realisation struck when the victim confided in her son about the incident,” he said.
Upon further checks, it was discovered that the sum of RM900,000 had been transferred into seven different bank accounts through 55 transactions from mid-October to early November.
The victim promptly reported the incident to the police and the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and dishonestly inducing the delivery of property.
In view of this, Mancha urged the public not to succumb to panic or worry if faced with allegations without evidence of wrongdoing.
“Members of the public are also advised to download the Whoscall app to help you decide whether to answer a phone call or not.
“The cooperation between the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) and the developer of the Whoscall allows phone numbers listed in the CCID Semak Mule database to be flagged as scammers by Whoscall,” he said.
