Retired commando claims he was ‘hypnotised’ into handing over RM200,000 retirement fund to friend

SEREMBAN – A retired commando claims he was left financially ruined after falling into a bizarre spell of trust that allowed a former friend to allegedly siphon away more than RM200,000 of his hard-earned retirement money.

Mohd Zaidi Nordin, 42, is now fighting to rebuild his life after alleging that a trusted friend coaxed him into handing over his entire retirement fund through a dubious business scheme that spiralled into a financial nightmare.

The father of four described himself as behaving as though he were "not fully conscious" throughout the ordeal, insisting that the man he once considered a friend manipulated him into believing in a lucrative subsidised cooking oil venture.

“I had actually lost contact with him for a long time, but coincidentally met another friend at a restaurant who offered a project to open a subsidised cooking oil factory,” he recalled, explaining that he had just left military service and was eager to begin a business.

Zaidi said the suspect played the part of a successful entrepreneur convincingly, even showing him a factory in Senawang and parading him through what was claimed to be the suspect’s luxurious residence.

“At that time, he looked like a businessman and that convinced me completely without any doubt,” he said.

The deception grew bolder when Zaidi was taken to Indonesia for what was said to be involvement in a flour and sugar trade.

“But throughout the 11 days we were there, we did not do anything and he started asking about my retirement gratuity, which he said would be used as our business capital,” Zaidi said.

In that hazy state, Zaidi made more than ten transactions to the suspect and the suspect’s wife, draining his retirement account to just RM1.

“I do not know what happened to me at that time because when I think back, I was like in a ‘half-conscious’ state," he admitted.

The control the suspect wielded appeared to extend beyond finances.

Upon returning to Malaysia, Zaidi said he even moved his family to a house in Sendayan at the suspect’s urging and surrendered over RM60,000 from his Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) savings.

By then, his finances were shattered. He had no choice but to sell his Nissan Almera to keep his household afloat, while three of his children stopped attending school for months due to a total lack of funds.

“I only realised I had been cheated after my brother and sister-in-law came to the house to recite Yassin. I was completely devastated at that moment,” he said.

When pressed to return the money, the suspect supposedly stalled before disappearing altogether.

The grand house where Zaidi had been led earlier was later discovered to be empty and merely a rental unit.

Zaidi filed a police report in July last year, along with a photograph of the suspect, but says he has received no information since.

“In total, the amount I lost is RM221,872. To survive, I now work on contract doing painting, cementing and tree-cutting jobs," he said, urging authorities to catch the suspect before others fall victim.