Retiree falls prey to phone scam, loses RM1.2mil

KUCHING: A private sector retiree has lodged a police report claiming that he suffered losses of RM1.2mil in a phone scam in April.

Sarawak police commissioner Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri said the 66-year-old man from Miri district claimed to have received a phone call from the suspect on April 18, saying the victim was involved in a money laundering case.

He said the suspect then asked the victim to open two new bank accounts to facilitate the investigation, Bernama reported.

“The victim opened a new bank account at two local financial institutions on April 19 and 20 before giving the banking information and password to the suspect.

“The suspect then instructed the victim to transfer money amounting to RM1.2mil through four transactions, from his AmBank and Employee Provident Fund (EPF) accounts, to the two newly-opened bank accounts,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Mohd Azman said the victim only realised he had been cheated after checking the balance in his two new bank accounts and found that the money had been transferred to an unknown account in stages from April 19 to May 3.