JOHOR BARU: A 30-year-old woman was cheated into investing RM61,360 in an online fake scheme involving health and bath products, which promised a 50 per cent return.
The woman, who is a manager of a car detailing shop providing paint protection film (PPF) wrap services, was convinced to invest in the scheme by her client who had sent his car for the PPF wrap services on Oct 31.
Johor Baru (South) police chief, Assistant Commissioner Raub Selamat, said that convinced by her client, she made 16 online cash transfers to eight bank accounts between Dec 11 and 19, in stages amounting to RM61,360.
However, when she attempted to withdraw her profits, she was instructed to pay an additional RM47,000, which was claimed to be for tax purposes, which she declined.
After numerous failed attempts to recover her capital investments, she lodged a police report today.
Raub said the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating. He said actions will be taken against the bank account holders if evidence suggests that they gave or sold their accounts to third parties, which is a violation under Section 424B of the Penal Code.
"Giving someone else control of a bank account or payment instrument without lawful authority or purpose can be penalised with a maximum seven-year imprisonment term and fines up to RM100,000 or both."
He advised the public to remain vigilant against fraudulent schemes offering unrealistic financial returns and urged them to verify investment opportunities thoroughly before making any payments.