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By Ashley Sim and Karen Bong
KUCHING, June 14: Sarawak recorded 2,461 commercial crime cases in 2022 which resulted in a significant financial loss of RM63.7 million and 1,050 arrests by the police.
Referring to the statistics recently released by Royal Malaysia Police, Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg pointed out that cases in Sarawak accounted for 8.3 per cent out of the total 30,536 cases reported in Malaysia last year totalling RM1.73 billion in losses.
“Macau scams are the most financially damaging with a total loss of RM13 million across 246 cases in Sarawak, followed by impersonation fraud where scammers posed as contacts of unsuspecting victims, with a loss of RM4.2 million across 183 cases.
“Online job fraud cases accounted for 225 cases and resulted in a loss of RM2.9 million,” he said when addressing the Financial Crimes Collaboration and Prevention Seminar held at a hotel here today.
Online fraud crimes constituted the largest share of overall commercial crime in Malaysia, accounting for 65.6 per cent in 2022 and 65.7 per cent in 2021.
The total losses from online fraud increased to RM684.5 million in 2022, up from RM560.8 million in 2021.
Despite Malaysia seeing a decrease from 31,490 cases reported in 2021 with a total loss of RM2.2 billion, Abang Johari emphasised that the number of arrests rose to 20,252 in 2022, compared to 16,778 in 2021.
“These statistics demonstrate that the people of Sarawak particularly and Malaysia as a whole face similar risks of financial crime.
“As such, it is imperative to implement more efficient and effective strategies, approaches, and action plans to prevent the pervasiveness of such risks,” he said.
Abang Johari stressed that financial crimes have far-reaching consequences that extend beyond the present and into the long-term future, affecting both the country and its people.
These implications, he said, include negative perceptions of government effectiveness, resource deprivation due to tax evasion and smuggling, reduced investment and economic activity, social injustice, and political instability.
With that, Abang Johari emphasised that it is imperative that proactive measures are taken to ensure that the country’s limited revenue is fully channelled towards nation-building rather than being greedily exploited by criminals for illicit gain.
“Protecting the interests and well-being of the people from falling victim to crime and criminals should be a top priority. It is crucial to reduce the volume and impact of increasing crime rates.
“This is particularly significant for nation-building efforts, especially in Sarawak as we strive to become a developed and high income region by 2030,” he added.
The seminar is jointly organised by National Financial Crime Prevention Centre (NFCC), Malaysia Inland Revenue Board and Bank Negara Malaysia.
Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah and NFCC director-general Dato Seri Mustafar Ali were among those present. — DayakDaily
