Crime & Courts

Temerloh senior citizen loses RM274,000 to online bail scam

KUANTAN: A vegetable trader was tricked into believing she could post her bail payment online to evade arrest, resulting in the loss of RM274,000 from her Tabung Haji and Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) savings.

The 68-year-old from Temerloh fell victim to a scheme involving several individuals claiming to be an insurance agent, policeman, deputy public prosecutor and a fraud investigator.

State police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the victim received a phone call on Sept 28 from a caller who introduced himself as an insurance agent.

"The caller told her that she had an insurance claim under her name, which the victim denied. The call was then connected to a man posing as a policeman, who identified himself as an inspector from the Ampang Jaya police headquarters," he said in a statement today.

"The man claimed that the victim was involved in money laundering and instructed her to provide her bank account details for further investigation.

"Each time the victim expressed confusion over what she was told, the call was transferred to another officer, including one impersonating a deputy public prosecutor.

"The supposed deputy public prosecutor claimed that an arrest warrant had been issued against the victim and requested she transfer all her Tabung Haji and ASB savings into one single bank account for investigation purposes and to postpone her arrest."

Yahaya said on Oct 1, the victim received a call from someone claiming to be a fraud investigator, who told her to replace her debit card and register her account using a new mobile number.

"She transferred RM237,000 through 32 online transactions between Oct 2 and Oct 10 into 14 separate bank accounts provided by the suspects.

"The victim was also told to deposit RM29,000 through the cash deposit machine as bail payment to avoid arrest," he said, adding that the victim also lost the RM8,000 she kept in her account.

Yahaya said the victim realised she had been scammed after discussing the incidents with her family members and lodged a report yesterday.

He advised the public to exercise caution when receiving calls from unknown individuals claiming to represent enforcement agencies and not to share their bank information with strangers.

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