KUALA TERENGGANU: The number of online fraud cases in Terengganu has risen to 1,223 from January to October, compared to 1,019 cases in the same period last year.
State police chief Datuk Mohd Khairi Khairuddin said the total losses recorded amounted to RM24.12mil, up from RM19.97mil last year.
He added that online shopping fraud accounted for the highest number of cases this year, with 457 reported, followed by investment scams (238 cases), phone scams (196 cases), fake loans (162 cases), fake offers (137 cases) and love scams (33 cases).
“The Terengganu Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) has opened 1,755 investigation papers related to commercial crimes, with 1,223 of them involving online fraud,” he said during the rank insignia ceremony and the handover of duties for the CCID head at the Terengganu police contingent headquarters yesterday, reported Bernama.
At the event, Bukit Aman’s CCID Investment Syndicate investigating officer DSP Shahriman Shaari was promoted to superintendent and appointed as Terengganu CCID chief.
Mohd Khairi also said that the Terengganu contingent has achieved first place in the return of funds related to commercial crimes, successfully returning a total of RM629,124.
In another development, he reminded victims of online fraud to report immediately to the National Scam Response Centre at 997 to avoid further losses and increase the chances of recovering their money.
“Reporting promptly enables banks to act quickly to intercept stolen funds and help save the remaining money,” he said, adding that victims who report immediately upon noticing suspicious transactions have a higher chance of getting their money back.
“If a report is made after several months, it will be much harder for us to assist,” he said.
