Businesswoman loses RM310,000 to scammers in Kuala Lumpur

KUALA LUMPUR: A 55-year-old businesswoman lost RM310,000 after she became a victim of a Macau scam.

Kuala Lumpur Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) chief Asst Comm Mohd Mahidisham Ishak said the victim received a call from someone posing as a bank officer, claiming that her credit card had been misused.

"She was told to contact ‘Bank Negara’ via a number provided by the caller.

"She then divulged her bank account details after being asked to do so," he said when contacted on Wednesday (Nov 10).

The victim realised she was duped when she received a notification that RM310,000 from her account had been transferred in several transactions, he added.

"We are investigating under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating," he said.

ACP Mohd Mahidisham advised the public to be cautious and practice various ways to avoid being victims of Macau scams, including getting full details of an investigation if any officer from a department or entity called them.

"Get the name and rank of the caller and their place of work.

"Call the same agency back through its official phone line.

"Never divulge bank account details to any third party," he said.

He urged those with information on any crime or suspicious activity to contact the Kuala Lumpur police hotline at 03-2146 0584/ 0585, the CCID Scam Response Centre at 03-26101559/1599, or any nearest police station.

Macau Scams often start with a phone call from someone pretending to be an officer from a bank, government or law enforcement agency or debt collector.

The scammer would then claim that the potential victim owes money or has an unpaid fine, often with a very short window of less than an hour, to settle the payment or face "dire consequences".

These unsuspecting victims would then be asked to make payments to get them off the hook.