BINTULU, Oct 28: Naiveite caused a female retiree to lose RM240,000 to an online scam offering non-existent part-time jobs.
Bintulu district police chief, Supt Zulkifli Suhaili said on Sept 30, the 53-year-old victim noticed an advertisement on social media which offered part-time work.
“As she was interested to know more about the job, she contacted a number given in the advertisement. Subsequently her phone number was added to a WhatsApp group,” he said.
The victim was then contacted by a suspect who asked her to give the job a try.
“She was told that the work is flexible and she could earn between RM300 to RM500 a day. The suspect briefed the victim that the company’s Digital Marketing Team job is to help petty traders increase their e-commerce sales and to find new markets for them,” he said.
She was also told that she could earn a 10 per cent commission if she bought goods from the petty traders and the commission together with her money would be returned to her after the goods were sold.
“Thereafter she made a total of 41 transfers amounting to RM240,000 to eight account numbers,” he said.
The woman later realised that she had been conned by the suspect when all attempts to contact him failed. She lodged a police report on Oct 23.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating. — DayakDaily
