KLUANG: An influencer practising lawyer lodged a police report after discovering that scammers had used his name and law practice to defraud victims, falsely promising to help them recover lost funds through legal action.
Gan Hsien Yang became aware of the scam when a university student, who was previously scammed of RM6,200 in an elaborate phone scam, sent screenshots of his conversation with a man using the lawyer's profile picture, believed downloaded from his Facebook account.
Gan told the News Straits Times that the man who had his picture but used an unrecognised number had allegedly contacted the student to help him recover the funds, with a small legal fee.
Gan believed the scammers impersonated him and used his reputation to gain the trust of potential victims, claiming they could recover previous scam losses by initiating legal proceedings.
In exchange, the victims were asked to pay upfront fees, which the scammers assured would cover legal expenses and filing costs.
"The scammers are exploiting vulnerable individuals who are desperate to get their money back, using my name and credentials to build false credibility," he said when contacted today.
District police chief Assistant Commissioner Bahrin Mohd Noh said the lawyer lodged a police report last night, claiming his picture had been used by an unknown party on WhatsApp to offer services to scam victims to recover their lost funds.
He said the lawyer was advised to lodge a report with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.