By Wendy John
SIBU, Feb 11: An insurance agent has been cheated of RM10,700 in a parcel scam by a man claiming to be a China national interested in investing in Malaysia.
Sibu district police chief ACP Stanley Jonathan Ringgit said that at about 10.15pm on Monday (Feb 10), the victim was at her home at Jalan Perpati when she received a call from a man who identified himself as ‘Steven Lee’.
‘Steven’ told her that he was from China but was living in the USA.
“Throughout their conversation, both told each other of their jobs and their lives. Then ‘Steven’ told her that he was interested to invest in Malaysia and would like to share the commission from the business venture if she could help him in his pursuit,” he said.
On February 2, the victim was told that ‘Steven’ would like to send her a gift.
Stanley said on the same day, the victim received a call from a ‘Mary Tan’ claiming to be from a courier company, informing her that a parcel addressed to her had arrived at KLIA.
“On February 4, the victim as requested made four transfers totalling RM10,700 to an account number provided by the scammer. The money she was told was to pay for custom duty.
However after making the payment, ‘Mary’ pestered her to make more transfers.
“The victim was told to confirm with ‘Steven’ on the extra payment. When she called up ‘Steven’, she was told that he would pay her back when he arrived in Malaysia,” said Stanley.
She felt something was not right and believed that she had been the victim of a scam. She then lodged a police report.
Stanley said the case was being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating. —DayakDaily
