SIBU: A civil servant in Sarikei lost RM510,000 after falling victim to a Macau scam in which he was accused of being involved in a money laundering case.
Sarawak Police Commissioner Datuk Mancha Ata said the victim, in his late 50s, was at work in late June when he received a call from an individual claiming to be from a courier company.
"The caller claimed the victim had sent a package containing several credit cards and his identity card," Comm Mancha said in a statement on Wednesday (Oct 9).
The call was then transferred to another suspect, claiming to be an officer from Melaka district police headquarters, who accused the victim of involvement in money laundering.
The suspect warned the victim that failure to cooperate would result in his assets and bank accounts being frozen.
Worried, the victim then made multiple financial transactions to several bank accounts between early and mid-July as instructed by the "police officer".
The victim eventually realised he was being scammed when the suspect demanded more money even after he had already transferred a total of RM510,000, Comm Mancha added.
