Senior Citizen Loses Nearly Rm500k In Poslaju Police Phone Scam

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PETALING JAYA: Another phone scam has been reported, leaving a senior citizen almost half a million ringgit poorer, after she was duped into believing that she was on the verge of being arrested by the police.
"On July 3, the victim received a call, claiming to be from Poslaju, saying that a package had been sent by her to Sabah that contained her identity card and ATM cards.
"Then on July 5, she was contacted by a man who went by the name Chong, who said RM148,000 from one Chang Poon Siew had been deposited into her account.
"The victim was then forwarded to an 'Insp Zaki' who claimed that she was under investigation and could be arrested," said Petaling Jaya OCPD Asst Comm Nik Ezanee Mohd Faisal in a statement on Wednesday (Sept 30).
In fear, she complied with the scammer's request to transfer her money to them.
Her first money transfer was done on August 7, with RM29,934 was sent to the suspect's bank account. Two more transfers were made on August 17 and 24 when she sent two cheques with a combined value of RM415,000.
On Sept 29, the victim was queried by a bank officer when she was at the bank over the large transfers made.
"At first she was hesitant but she eventually told the officer of the calls. The bank officer then told her that she had fallen victim to a scam.
"A police report was made on the same day," he said.
ACP Nik Ezanee urged those confronted with such calls and threats to remain calm and not act rashly.
"The public is advised to contact the police if they receive calls like these. These syndicates target senior citizens who may not be as exposed to the latest information on cyber crimes," he said. - Star

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