SIBU: An e-hailing driver suffered a staggering loss of RM78,590 after he was misled into believing he was involved in money laundering.
The incident unfolded on Monday (July 24) when the 40-something victim received a call from an individual claiming to be a police officer stationed at Bukit Aman.
Sibu police chief ACP Zulkipli Suhaili said the imposter told the victim that his bank account was allegedly used for money laundering by an unknown party.
To supposedly verify the information, the victim was asked to provide personal and banking details.
“Under the false pretense that his account was linked to a criminal case, the victim was coerced into transferring money from his bank account to another bank account.
“The suspect reassured the victim that the funds would be returned once the case was resolved, convincing the victim to comply with the instructions,” he said.
Driven by fear and worry, the victim followed the suspect’s directives and transferred RM78,590.65 into three unknown bank accounts.
However, as events unfolded, the victim began to grow suspicious of the situation and eventually realised that he was cheated.
Zulkipli added that the victim came forward to lodge a police report yesterday (July 25) and the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
He advised the public not to panic when receiving phone calls from unknown individuals claiming to be from government departments, agencies or financial institution.
He also urged them to stay informed and seek guidance on scams from the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) or follow the Facebook pages of @CyberCrimeAlertRMP and @JSJKPDRM.
In order to prevent falling victim to scams, the public are encouraged to verify any suspicious bank accounts or phone numbers using the Semak Mule website at http://ccid.rmp.gov.my/semakmule/.
