JOHOR BARU: A 57-year-old retiree has lost more than RM500,000 after falling victim to a fake investment scheme advertised on social media.
Seri Alam OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Sohaimi Ishak said the man, who previously worked in the private sector, came across an online advertisement on Facebook in March and decided to click on it.
“The victim was enticed by the promise of high returns in a short period. Believing he was investing in the scheme, he deposited a total of RM535,766 into five different bank accounts from March 13 to June 5,” he said in a statement on Saturday (June 21).
ACP Mohd Sohaimi said the retiree conducted a total of 26 bank transactions.
“He realised something was wrong when he was asked to transfer more funds to cash out his profits,” he said, adding that the victim lodged a police report on Tuesday (June 17).
“The public are reminded to check unknown bank account numbers using the police’s SemakMule portal because early investigations revealed that the five bank accounts involved in this case were linked to 22 other investment scam cases,” he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, and action will also be taken against those who allow others to use their bank accounts as mule accounts.
