KULAI: A 55-year-old woman thought she had scored a cheap bargain for a gold bracelet but ended up losing over RM175,000 to an online gold scam.
Kulai OCPD Asst Comm Tan Seng Lee said the victim, a private sector retiree, had come across a Facebook advertisement on Sept 10 offering gold items at cheap prices.
“She clicked on the link and was added to a Telegram group called ‘Pajak Gadai Lelong Emas 916’.
“After browsing, she was interested in buying a gold bracelet priced at RM75 and communicated with a woman known as Nurul Aliya,” he said in a statement on Sunday (Oct 12).
He said the victim was initially asked to pay RM655 for the gold item, under the impression that she was also paying for the handling fees and delivery charges.
She was subsequently told to make more transactions for various “charges”.
“Between Oct 6 and 11, the victim made 35 transactions amounting to RM175,305 to several local bank accounts for various payments such as customs tax, Inland Revenue Board tax, excise duty and other related charges.
“The victim realised she had been scammed after she was once again asked to make additional payments to receive the bracelet,” said ACP Tan.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which carries a jail term of between one and 10 years, whipping and a fine, upon conviction.
Tan also reminded the public not to be easily deceived by cheap gold offers online.
He advised the public to use online services provided by the police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department such as the National Scam Response Centre and Semak Mule to check bank account numbers before making a transaction.
