A 19-YEAR-old unemployed woman was swindled out of RM62,000 after falling victim to a phone scam by individuals posing as police officers and representatives from a payment services company.
Besut district police chief Superintendent Azamuddin Ahmad @ Abu said the incident began when the woman answered a call made to her father’s phone from a person claiming to be from Touch ‘n Go headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.
“The caller alleged that her father had incurred RM25,000 in unpaid summonses linked to a Touch ‘n Go account,” Azamuddin said in a statement. “The call was then ‘transferred’ to someone purporting to be a police officer from the Perak police contingent.”
The situation escalated when the so-called officer told the young woman that a bank account in her father’s name was involved in a money laundering and drug investigation.
In a panic, and believing her father’s name needed to be cleared, the woman was instructed to make a payment of RM60,000. Out of fear and urgency, she sold her mother’s gold jewellery to raise the money. Her mother is a retired teacher.
The total amount lost was RM62,000.
Police are investigating the case under Section 420 of the Penal Code, which deals with cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property.
Authorities have repeatedly urged the public to be vigilant against such scams, which often use fear tactics and impersonation of officials to pressure victims into making payments. - June 27, 2025
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