MIRI -- Two more elderly persons have claimed to have been scammed by impersonators posing as police officers, as the number of Sarawakians falling to such cheats continues to rise.
Sarawak's police chief, Commissioner Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri, today said the latest two cases were reported in state capital Kuching in recent days.
The incidents involved a retired male government employee in his 70s and a retired woman clerk in her 60s, he said in a press statement.
Both had reported to the police station in Kuching that they were recently contacted by people via calls and Whatsapp messages, claiming to be police officers and ministry people from Perak.
The callers had accused the male victim of committing criminal offences and had subsequently coaxed him into depositing RM123,000 into several bank accounts in order for his name to be cleared.
The female victim had also been intimidated via the same modus operandi into depositing RM280,000 into several bank accounts to clear her name of alleged crimes the scammers accused her of committing.
Azman said the state police are probing these cases as alleged cheating.
He once again called on the public not to be so easily frightened and duped by messages or callers from unknown backgrounds who accuse them of crimes they have not committed.
Those who receive such calls or messages should just ignore them or report to the nearest police station to clarify the situation, he said.
He also reminded the public never to transfer money online to anyone they do not know personally.
Sarawak is the top state in terms of the number of scam victims in Malaysia, it had been reported recently. – The Vibes, September 12, 2023
