MUAR: An unemployed man lost RM310,000 of his savings after falling victim to a non-existent investment scam.
Muar OCPD Asst Comm Raiz Mukhliz Azman Aziz said the 47-year-old victim was deceived by an investment advertisement offering high returns on YouTube in Sept.
“The victim then filled in his personal details before being contacted through WhatsApp by an unknown individual.
“The suspect later introduced an investment application and promised returns of between 10% and 30% based on the amount invested,” he said in a statement on Tuesday (Dec 9).
He added that the victim, who was unemployed and depended solely on his savings as his source of income, ended up making 17 payment transactions.
“The transactions were made between Nov 10 and Dec 5, amounting to a total loss of RM310,000.
“After logging into the application, the victim saw a display claiming that his investment had supposedly grown to more than RM2.5mil,” he said.
ACP Raiz Mukhliz said the victim realised he had been scammed when attempting to withdraw his profits.
“The suspect demanded the victim pay an additional fee amounting to RM382,811.60.
“This case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code, which carries a minimum jail term of one year and up to 10 years, whipping and a fine upon conviction,” he said.
He also advised the public not to disclose banking details or transfer money based on suspicious phone calls.
“Instead, verify information through official agency numbers, the Semak Mule portal or the CCID Scam Response Centre and always follow advice shared on the police’s social media pages to stay informed about scammer tactics,” he said.
