KOTA TINGGI: A woman took a RM250,000 bank loan and transferred RM238,000 of it to a "police officer" who had accused her of laundering money through a parcel scam.
The 48-year-old initially received a phone call in August from an unidentified number claiming to be from a courier company.
The caller said a parcel addressed to her was flagged by the police, and the call was transferred to the "police investigating officer".
District police chief Superintendent Yusof Othman said the scam escalated then as the supposed "officer" demanded she take a personal loan of RM250,000, as a fee to omit her name from the money-laundering investigations.
Upon her bank loan approval, she made 22 online bank transfers to six bank accounts amounting to RM238,000 between September and October.
However, following the cash transfers, there were no further communications from the "officer" to update her on the investigation's status.
She grew suspicious and soon realised that she was deceived, lodging a police report yesterday.
Yusof said the case has been classified as cheating.
He urged the public to remain cautious, and always verify the identity of anyone claiming to represent government agencies.
To minimise the risk of falling prey to scams, police advised the public to check unknown bank account numbers through the online 'Semak Mule' service and download the 'Whoscall' app to screen unknown callers.