RM24 million bank deposits rip-off: Woman among 4 held

Daily Express

13-08-2025

Published on: Wednesday, August 13, 2025
Published on: Wed, Aug 13, 2025
By: Jo Ann Mool Text Size: L/R: Josepin, Leong Hin Ping, Vireonis and Nasir. Kota Kinabalu: Four individuals, including a woman, were each sentenced to three and a half years jail by the High Court here, Tuesday, for assisting an organised criminal group linked to fraudulent withdrawal of RM24.2 million from fixed deposit accounts. Business contractor Josepin J. Langkan, 39, Vireonis Jonok, 36, Leong Hin Ping, 64, and unlicensed taxi driver Nasir Abdul Rasid, 62, pleaded guilty separately before Judge Datuk Duncan Sikodol to the alternative charge of assisting an organised criminal group to further the group's interests. They committed the offence in 2024, at the MBSB Branch here between April 26 - June 17; June 5 - June 26; April 26 - July 10; and April 26 - July 1, respectively. The alternative charges under Section 130W of the Penal Code carry a jail term of up to 10 years on conviction. They were each initially charged with being members of an organised crime group involved in serious offences for the material benefit of the group led by Josepin J. Langkan under Section 130V(1) of the Penal Code, which carries a jail term of between five and 20 years, on conviction. Duncan said the offence was a serious one that struck at the heart of public safety, and that a custodial sentence was necessary to reflect its gravity and uphold public interest. 'Balancing these considerations, the court sentences each accused to three and a half years from the date of arrest,' he said. In Vireonis' case, Duncan noted her counsel's submission that she suffers from lupus, but held that, in order to uphold public interest, a custodial sentence was still warranted for this type of offence. The prosecution said a police report was lodged on June 27, 2024, by an Assistant Supt based on intelligence into an organised criminal group suspected of manufacturing fake identity cards and using them to commit large-scale financial fraud. Acting on the information, police arrested Vireonis and Leong on June 28, 2024 at 12.15pm and on July 17, 2024 at 12.30pm, respectively, at the roadside near Jalan Palawan, here, while Josepin and Nasir were arrested on July 8, 2024 at 2.30am, at an entertainment outlet in Penampang and were then handed over to the Investigating Officer. Each of the four had assisted an organised criminal group in committing a criminal breach of trust by a clerk or servant, using forged valuable securities, namely, fake identity cards, to help the group obtain financial gain. With the help of the four, the group fraudulently withdrew large sums of money from several fixed deposit accounts at MBSB bank branches here using fake identity cards, the court heard. Investigations also revealed that the organised criminal group assisted by the four was involved in the commission of serious offences under Section 408 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 120B of the Penal Code as in Manggatal Report: A case involved two unauthorised withdrawals from the fixed deposit account of Wang Su Sing at the MBSB Alamesra branch — RM2 million on April 26, 2024 and RM7 million on April 30, 2024. Tanjong Aru Report: A case relates to the wrongful withdrawal of funds from the fixed deposit account of Ananthan a/l Sinivesan at MBSB Lintas Jaya. Two transactions were recorded — RM2 million on May 9, 2024 and RM4 million on May 10, 2024. Manggatal Report: At the same MBSB Lintas Jaya branch, two fraudulent withdrawals were also made from the account of Edgar Ralph Fernandez — RM2 million on May 17, 2024 and RM3.7 million on May 21, 2024. Another Manggatal Report, which involved one transaction at the MBSB Alamesra branch, where RM3.5 million was unlawfully withdrawn from the fixed deposit account of Karina Ang Li Li on June 5, 2024. Counsel Luke Ressa Balang and Hairul V. Othman representing Josepin, Leong and Vireonis and counsel Dominic Chew representing Nasir, requested a minimum sentence of between three and four years by submitting, among others, that it was their first offence, they were remorseful and regretted their action. Luke added that Josepin would be an important witness in the cases of other accused persons linked to the same matter, and had agreed to assist the prosecution in bringing others to justice. He applied for Vireonis, who was on court bail, to be placed on a good behaviour bond due to her severe health condition, stating that she would not survive if imprisoned. Another accused, Mazlani Jenuary, had earlier pleaded guilty to the alternative charge, but his counsel applied for the facts and sentencing to be on another date. The case of Mazlani and the remaining two accused - Iren Chin Nyuk Thien and Christina @ Caroline Pianus Etip ( both bank managers), who were separately charged with being members of an organised crime group involved in serious offences for the material benefit of the group led by Josepin J. Langkan between April 26, 2024 and July 10, the same year at the MBSB branch, here, would have their case heard on Sept 22. Chin and Christina were charged under Section 130V(1) of the Penal Code carries a jail term of between five years and 20 years on conviction. On June 13, three individuals, Sugumaran K. Ponniah, 56; Subramaniam Thangavelu, 57, and Hasran Magin, 47, were sentenced to five years' jail each after pleading guilty to the similar alternative charge against them, respectively. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
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