16-05-2025
Government officer loses over RM60k in phone scam
JOHOR BARU: A government officer lost RM62,930 after being duped by a 'phone scam' in which she was falsely accused of being involved in drug trafficking.
Johor Baru south district police chief, Assistant Commissioner Raub Selamat, said the police received a report from the woman, who claimed she received a call on April 28 while on duty in the city.
He said the victim received a call from an individual who identified himself as Fakrulrazi from the Communications Control and Compliance Unit.
"The caller claimed that the victim was involved in a fraud case and would be investigated.
"She was then connected to a line allegedly belonging to the 'Ipoh Police Headquarters (IPK)' and spoke to individuals identifying themselves as 'Sergeant Danish' and 'Inspector Simon'.
"During the call, the victim was informed that her personal information was linked to drug trafficking and money laundering activities. Panicked, she was then connected to another individual who introduced himself as 'Datuk' for further investigation," he said in a statement today.
According to Raub, the victim was then instructed to take a personal loan through a bank and provide her banking details.
He said the victim was assured that the loan amount would be returned once the investigation was completed.
"On May 6, the victim took out a loan of RM65,000 from a bank branch in Johor Baru and provided her bank account details to the suspect.
"Checks revealed that a total of four money transfers amounting to RM62,930 were made to unknown accounts.
"Realising she had been scammed, the victim lodged a police report. Checks on the phone number used by the suspect revealed that it had been involved in two previous scam cases," he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
