NILAI: A retired civil servant and a housewife here have been cheated of almost RM350,000 in separate phone scams.
Nilai OCPD Supt Abdul Malik Hasim the victims received calls from people claiming to be policemen in early March.
They were accused of being involved in money laundering and drug-related activities.
"The callers, who used the same modus operandi (in both cases), told the victims that arrest warrants had been issued under their names," he said in a statement on Tuesday (March 25).
The victims denied being involved in illegal activities but were told to transfer their savings into several bank accounts while police investigated.
Between March 3 and 22, they transferred the money into eight bank accounts.
However, they eventually realised that they had been scammed and lodged separate police reports on Monday (March 24), Supt Malik added.
The 66-year-old man lost around RM163,000 while the 54-year-old woman lost about RM186,000.
The cases are being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which carries a jail term of between one and 10 years, caning and a fine upon conviction.
Supt Malik reminded the public to be cautious and not readily believe that the person calling them is a government officer.
He urged them to always check with the police first or call the Commercial Crime Investigation Department's Scam Response Centre at 03-2610 1559 or 03-2610 1599.
