JOHOR BARU: A 49-year-old woman lost more than RM300,000 after being scammed by an individual claiming to be an officer from the Central Database Hub (Padu).
Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Raub Selamat said the victim, who works as a lecturer, initially received a phone call on May 9 informing her that she had received financial aid worth RM1,200 from Padu.
“Shortly after, she received another phone call from an unknown man claiming to be a police officer from the Perak district police, informing her that she was involved in a money laundering case.
“The victim, who denied the matter, received another phone call, this time from a person claiming to be a ‘Datuk’ from the same police headquarters.
“The scammers requested the victim to transfer her money for safety reasons while the investigation is being conducted,” he said in a statement here on Saturday (Aug 10).
The victim then made 13 financial transactions totalling RM331,000 from June 9 until July 26, he added.
“The victim tried to call the suspects after the money was transferred, but the number was no longer active,” he said, adding that it was then that the victim realised she had been duped.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
He also urged the public and scam victims to immediately contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997 to block financial transactions from their bank accounts.
“They can also check phone numbers and bank accounts to see if they have been used in scams or other fraudulent activities at https://semakmule.rmp.gov.my/,” he said.
