16-05-2025
Civil servant loses over RM60,000 in phone scam case
JOHOR BARU: A civil servant lost more than RM60,000 after falling victim to a phone scam by individuals impersonating authorities investigating her alleged involvement in drug trafficking.
The 43-year-old woman's ordeal began when she received a call from someone claiming to be from the Communications Monitoring and Compliance Unit while she was at work on April 28.
Johor Baru South district police chief Assistant Commissioner Raub Selamat said the woman panicked when she was told by the caller that she was involved and would be investigated in a fraud case.
"The victim was then connected to two men who claimed to be from the 'Ipoh IPK' (Ipoh police headquarters).
"The victim was told her information was linked to drug trafficking and money laundering activities," he said in a statement today.
Raub said the victim was then instructed to take out a personal loan through a bank and to hand over her banking account information.
He said the victim was promised that the loan money would be returned once the investigation was completed.
"On May 6, the victim took a RM65,000 loan from a bank branch in Johor Baru and gave her banking details to the suspect.
"Checks found that four transactions totalling RM62,930 were transferred to an unknown account.
"After realising she had been duped, the victim lodged a police report.
A check on the phone number used by the suspect showed it had been used in two previous fraud cases," he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating
