Penang top cop takes aim at growing number of online scams

NEW Penang police chief Datuk Ts Azizee Ismail is determined to fight cybercrime activities in the state, particularly online scamming which has left a trail of innocent victims.

Speaking after visiting the state commercial crime division, as part of his familiarization tour of the state police resources, he also sought feedback from investigating officers on ways to combat such scams.

Azizee had assumed the state top cop position earlier this year.

Penang commercial crime department head ACP Rozeni Ismail briefed Azizee on the various aspects of fighting white collar crime.

Azizee  said that the division played a crucial role in stabilising the economy by providing assurance and security to ensure  the public has confidence in the national financial system.

He called for more surveillance and preventive measures to fight online scamming, money laundering and other forms of fraud.

Scams have resulted in hundreds of millions of ringgit in losses for Penang residents in recent years, with no signs of the white-collar crimes slowing down.

It is also believed some victims have not come forward to lodge reports due to public stigma.

Investment and phone scams are among the common and financially devastating types of fraud with RM312.86 million in losses reported between 2022 and 2024.

Earlier, Azizee revealed that the crime index in Penang from January to September has shown a significant reduction, with 2,400 cases reported compared to 3,847 during the same period last year.

This is equivalent to a drop of 28.7 per cent or 1,447 cases, while the number of cases for violent crimes also dropped from 732 to 591, which is an 18.3 per cent reduction.

However, Azizee said police received a total of 13,777 reports related to frauds in the first six months of this year,  an increase of 3,434 cases compared to the same period last year, and with a total loss of RM174.6 million.

He added that the rise in commercial crime cases showed that police need to be aware of the modus operandi used by fraud syndicates to ensure prevention measures and enforcement actions can be implemented effectively. - October 30, 2025.