THE Labubu doll, the brainchild of Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung, has been fast gaining popularity, even in Malaysia.
However, this has also made these Labubu dolls the target of thieves and scammers.
It was recently reported that a first-generation Labubu was stolen from a keyring belonging to a student in Singapore, while another incident involving the Labubu doll occurred on Oct 27.
Reports yesterday said a family of three allegedly stole S$100 worth of Labubu dolls from a claw machine, also in Singapore.
According to reports in China Press, a Malaysian woman was the latest to fall victim to the Labubu obsession.
Reports said she lost RM20,000 trying to purchase a batch of these dolls from an Instagram seller.
She initially made a successful purchase of RM2,000 prompting her to make a larger purchase.
She transferred money from five different bank accounts and later discovered there were no updates from the seller.
She tried several times to contact the seller but had been blocked.
It was recently reported that a total of 34,497 cases of online scams involving losses of RM1.218 billion were reported nationwide in 2023.
Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said based on the 2023 statistics, telecommunications crime cases such as SMS contest scams, online impersonation scams, and phone call scams were among the highest recorded cases, with 10,348 cases involving losses totalling RM352.9 million. - October 31, 2024
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