KUCHING, Oct 19: A female information technology officer, in her 40s, lost RM306,000 after answering a scam call.
According to Sarawak Commissioner of Police Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri, the unfortunate incident unfolded when the victim received a phone call from an unknown individual, who claimed to be an information technology (IT) officer from the Ministry of Health.
The suspect had accused the victim of spreading false information regarding Covid-19.
“The phone call was then connected to Sergeant Yap (from Ipoh Police Station, Perak) and the suspect infromed the victim that the her identification card was implicated in a money laundering scheme within the banking system.
“Additionally, Sergeant Yap conveyed that an arrest warrant would be issued for her within 24 hours, with her case under scrutiny by the National Audit Department,” he disclosed in a statement today.
Panicked and filled with fear, the victim complied with the suspect’s instructions to open a new bank account and registering for online banking using the phone number and email provided by the caller.
In the middle of October this year, she performed four online transactions totalling RM146,000, as directed by the scammer.
The victim only realised she had been duped when she checked her savings status with the bank and discovered that RM160,000 had been transferred from her account to a third party.
Mohd Azman reiterated his advice for the public to be cautious when receiving calls from unknown sources. He encouraged individuals to share any suspicious calls with their spouses, friends, and family members.
Furthermore, he stressed the importance of not divulging sensitive banking information to unknown parties. — DayakDaily
