KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 — A young man suffered a loss of RM283,000 after being tricked by an online fraud syndicate posing as police on Sept 30.
The syndicate had apparently coerced the 18-year-old to hide in a ploy they conceived to convince him so the syndicate could demand a ransom of RM300,000 from his family.
Director of the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (JSJ) Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said police managed to find the victim cowering in fear at a homestay rented by the youth himself in Shah Alam on Oct 5 following a police report made by his mother on Oct 3.
He said the victim received a call from a member of the syndicate on Sept 30 who posed as a policeman saying that there was a package containing drugs addressed to him.
“After the syndicate ordered (forced) him to make a payment to avoid police action, the teenager then deposited money amounting to RM283,000 in four separate transactions into two different accounts four days in a row starting from Sept 30,” he said at a special press conference in Bukit Aman today.
Mohd Shuhaily said that after the man was no longer able to pay up, he was told to go into hiding on Oct 3 and to provide his mother’s phone number to the syndicate.
He said the syndicate then contacted the woman claiming her son had been kidnapped and demanded a ransom of RM300,000.
“Police managed to arrest two men, aged 32 and 24, in Penang and Kulim, Kedah on Oct 7 and 9, who acted as a mule account holder and a middleman of the syndicate.
“The man acting as an intermediary claimed he receives a payment of RM6,000 a month from the syndicate in question to withdraw the money deposited by the fraud victim to be deposited into another account.
“Both of them were remanded until Oct 14 and the case is investigated according to Section 365 of the Penal Code for kidnapping,” he said.
Mohd Shuhaily, police would never discuss a case over the phone and hence, the public is asked to be wary when receiving a call from anyone claiming to be a police officer.
