Elderly Vegetable Trader Loses RM274,000 To Scam Syndicate

KUANTAN, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- An elderly woman suffered a loss of RM274,000 after being deceived by a scam syndicate posing as insurance officers and police officials.

Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman stated that the 68-year-old victim, who works as a vegetable trader, received a call from the suspects on Sept 28, informing her of an insurance claim made in her name.

The call was then transferred to another suspect who claimed to be a ‘police officer’, who accused the victim of being involved in money laundering activities and asked for her bank account information for further investigation.

“Each time the victim expressed confusion, the call would be transferred to another 'officer,' including one impersonating a Deputy Public Prosecutor, who claimed that a warrant had been issued for her arrest.

“To purportedly delay the warrant, the victim was instructed to transfer and consolidate her savings from Tabung Haji and ASB into one of her bank accounts for financial investigation,” he said in a statement today.

Yahaya said that on Friday, Oct 1, the victim received another call from a suspect impersonating an investigator, who urged her to change her bank card and register a new phone number.

The victim was then coerced into transferring RM237,000 into her account, which already contained RM8,000, while an additional RM29,000 was deposited into a third party’s account as bail payment.

“Unbeknownst to her, all the money in her accounts vanished, and a check revealed that 32 transfers had been made between Oct 2 and 10 to 14 different accounts,” he said.

Yahaya advised the public to remain vigilant and not to easily trust suspicious phone calls, especially those involving money transfer instructions or requests for personal information verification by unknown individuals.

-- BERNAMA