KEPALA BATAS: A 51-year-old senior bank officer was cheated of approximately RM3.38mil in a love scam which began when the victim met a man on a dating app.
The victim had met the man named John Eric Chen through the Coffee Meets Bagel app in August 2018.
He then offered the victim an opportunity to work together in a project worth USD$25mil but the victim was requested to make a pre-payment of USD$38,000 (RM157,624).
North Seberang Prai OCPD ACP Noorzainy Mohd Noor said the suspect had also promised to marry the victim in the near future.
He added that the victim made 19 bank transfers into three accounts given by the suspect between August 2018 and September 2018.
"As the victim believed the suspect, she had made transfers amounting to USD$815,331 which is equivalent to RM3.38mil. After the victim transferred the money, the suspect could no longer be reached," said ACP Noorzainy.
He added that this led the victim to make a police report on June 4 for further action
He added that the money was a combination of her salary, savings and money borrowed from family members.
ACP Noorzainy advised people to be alert and not be deceived by the tactics of online love scam syndicates.
He reminded the public to not easily fall in love or be persuaded with people using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Wechat.
"The case is now being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating," he said.
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