Johor cops smash Macau scam ring, nab foreign nationals

JOHOR BARU: A group of Chinese and Taiwanese nationals have been using a rented bungalow in a posh neighbourhood here and conning victims overseas of millions of ringgit.

However, the Macau scam syndicate’s operations came to an end several days ago when police moved in and arrested 15 foreigners including four women.

Police recovered an array of items including laptops, modems, phones and routers.

The suspects, in their 20s, and 40s, were part of a syndicate that cheated millions of yuan from dozens of Chinese citizens in China.

All the suspects, who entered Malaysia on tourist visas, have since been remanded to assist in investigations.

Police were also working with the Chinese Embassy and Interpol with regard to the case.

It is learnt that initial investigations showed that the suspects would pose as officers from the central bank in China and instruct their victims to settle their so-called debts with the bank.

Sources said that many of the victims were housewives, businessmen or elderly people from China.

“China is fast becoming popular for such scams as you can transfer big amounts of money online unlike in Malaysia which has a maximum amount per day,” sources said.

It is learnt that the syndicates use Voice Over Internet Protocol ( VOIP) to mimic their caller IDs, and the syndicate makes it seem like the number they are calling from is a government agency such as the central bank or police headquarters.

Sources said that as all the crimes were committed overseas, all the suspects detained would be deported to face charges in China.