MIRI – A senior citizen aged 66 has reportedly been cheated of RM1.2 million by a bogus enforcement group that managed to frighten him into believing he was being hunted for financial criminal offences.
The retiree lodged a police report in Miri, said Sarawak police commissioner Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri today.
The victim said in his report that a person claiming to be from a ministry and two others claiming to be police investigators had called and told him he was being probed for certain financial crimes.
“Over a series of calls, the victim had been duped into opening bank accounts and making a series of transactions, depositing up to RM1.2 million in order to settle these so-called cases.
“He only realised he had been duped after parting with so much savings and decided to go to the police.
“The public must always refer such cases to the nearest police station immediately. Do not make hasty money decisions when dealing with total strangers or those claiming to be enforcement people.
“Do not give personal details to unknown people,” he said in a press statement today.
Yesterday, it was reported that scammers operating online scams are also targeting young students and aged senior citizens to their list of victims, the police have warned.
Kuching police chief Ahsmon Bajah yesterday said the district alone saw 32 reported scam cases from January 1 to June 6 this year.
“For Kuching district alone, the 32 scam cases reported from January 1 to June 6 this year involved losses of about RM2.3 million.
“The victims included working adults from the public and private sectors, housewives, and even students and aged senior citizens.
“The ages of the victims are from 19 to 70,” he said in a press statement.
Ahsmon said aside from luring victims using attractive online investments, these scammers also pretended to be from enforcement agencies. – The Vibes, June 10, 2023
