JOHOR BARU: When a parcel arrived at his house, Robert thought it was something his children had purchased online.
He paid the RM69 cash-on-delivery (COD) charge without hesitation and only found out at night that none of his family members had placed an order.
“When I opened the package, I was surprised to find a bag containing eight pieces of dried longan.
“My children scolded me for paying for the parcel without checking with them beforehand,” said the 65-year-old who declined to give his full name.
Since then, Robert, who is self-employed, has been warning his family and friends to be cautious about such deliveries.
Meanwhile, a retiree who only wanted to be known as Tan, 63, said he received two such parcels within a month, both demanding RM68 COD.
“The first parcel arrived at my house in early July. I told the courier deliveryman that I did not order anything, but he said the item was addressed to my house and had my name and phone number,” he said.
“I refused to pay and was told to cancel the order so the parcel could be returned to the courier warehouse,” said Tan, who added that the same thing happened again two weeks later.
“After checking online, I found a number of social media posts from people who have received parcels from the same address, though the sender’s name was different.
“I am now concerned about my safety because how and where did the sender get my details?”
Johor MCA Youth public services and complaints bureau chief Henry Mok urged the public, especially senior citizens, to be vigilant when COD parcels arrive at their homes.
He said recipients have the right to reject a parcel after confirming that neither they nor their family members had placed an order.
“Though it looks like a harmless matter, it could become a burden to the recipients.
“In a worst-case scenario, if the parcels contain prohibited items such as drugs, it could implicate them.”
Mok also urged courier companies to improve their standard operating procedure and impose stricter guidelines for senders, saying some suspected parcel scam cases involved incomplete addresses or no contact numbers.
When contacted, Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Azrul Hisham Mohd Shaffei said police have not received any reports related to such incidents so far.
“Anyone who encountered such incidents can contact the nearest police station for assistance and also lodge a report so the authorities can take note of the matter,” he said.
