SHAH ALAM: Five scam syndicates, including one involving fraudulent subscriptions to adult videos, have been busted following the arrest of 40 individuals operating from luxury residences around the Klang Valley.
The operations were carried out by the Selangor Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) together with commercial crime investigation divisions from the Sungai Buloh, Shah Alam, Kajang and Subang Jaya district police headquarters.
Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Shazeli Kahar said five residences used as call centres were raided in Shah Alam, Kajang, Subang Jaya and two locations in Sungai Buloh.
Of the 40 suspects arrested, 37 were foreigners while the remaining three were Malaysians.
“Investigations revealed that the suspects were recruited as customer service operators and were paid a certain wage. Some had yet to receive any payment but had been promised remuneration.
“These five cases involved different syndicates which had been operating since the middle of this year and targeted victims from Taiwan, China, Japan and Hong Kong.
“Some of the operators deceived victims by impersonating police officers from an Asian country,” he told a press conference at the Selangor police headquarters here on Thursday (Aug 27).
Comm Shazeli said police were also investigating the authenticity of police identification cards used by some suspects, which were believed to be part of a new tactic employed by the syndicates to deceive their victims.
He said the premises used by the syndicates included bungalows, semi-detached houses, double-storey terrace houses and condominiums.
“The foreign suspects are believed to have entered the country using tourist passes, and checks are being conducted to verify their documents,” he said.
Police also seized various items, including mobile phones, books believed to contain scam scripts, modems, routers, laptops and passports, with the total value of the seized items estimated at RM165,000.
Comm Shazeli urged members of the public to provide information if they suspected call centre activities being carried out at residential areas or business premises so that enforcement action could be taken.
The cases are being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and Section 120B of the Penal Code for criminal conspiracy.
