KUANTAN: After earning RM50 profit from her first online task, a college lecturer assumed that she was destined for 'greater returns'.
Little did the 30-year-old woman from Kuantan realise that the RM50 was bait that landed her into a bigger mess, causing her to lose RM21,939 of her savings in less than a week to the part-time job syndicate.
The incident unfolded on New Year's day when the victim spotted a part-time job on social media which required her to complete 10 tasks and go on to earn 38 per cent commissions.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf said the victim clicked on a link shared by the suspect through WhatsApp.
"The link provided the victim with instructions to complete all her tasks. The lecturer transferred RM300 to a bank account which was provided by the suspect.
"Sometime later, RM350 was deposited into the victim's bank account and she earned a RM50 profit.
"The victim assumed the job was genuine and used her own savings to make nine other transactions into two separate bank accounts before realising she had been cheated," he said in a statement today.
He said the case was being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which carried a maximum jail term of 10 years and whipping, and a fine, if convicted.
Ramli reminded the public not to be easily duped by online job offers with promises of huge returns and to use the "Semak Mule" website- https://semakmule.rmp.gov.my/ - to check the bank account numbers before making any transactions.
KW: scam, Ramli, lecturer, Pahang, Whatsapp, bait, savings, tasks