Govt pensioner loses over RM120,000 in phone scam

IPOH - A 61-year-old government pensioner claimed to have lost RM127,560 when she fell prey to a syndicate posing as a courier company employee and police officers recently.

Perak police chief Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said that based on the police report received yesterday, it was found that the female victim from Kampung Sungai Tapah Tambahan here had been contacted by suspects, posing as a courier company employee and police officers.

He said the investigation found that on Sept 25, the victim, who was at home at the time, received a phone call from an unknown individual who introduced himself as an employee of a courier company and said that the victim had a package delivery problem.

He added that the victim was then connected to purportedly Penang police contingent headquarters line by an employee of the courier company and had spoken to an ‘inspector’ and a ‘sergeant’.

"The victim was tricked by the suspects who disguised themselves as police officers by providing a picture of the front of her bank card to them,” he said in a statement today.

Mohd Yusri said the victim only became aware of the suspects’ fraud after her daughter checked her mobile phone.

He said the victim suffered a total loss of RM127,560 in three transactions to three bank accounts belonging to different individuals between Oct 9 and 10, with the case now being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.

He also reminded the public to always be alert to suspicious phone calls, especially if they are purportedly from courier companies or government agencies.

The public can call the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997 if they are victims of phone scams or cybercrimes and have just made a transaction to a mule account, he said.

Any inquiries can also be forwarded to the CCID Infoline at 013-211 1222 (WhatsApp only, operating hours from 8 am to 8 pm) while bank accounts and phone numbers that may be involved in fraud cases can be verified via https://semakmule.rmp.gov.my. - BERNAMA