Kelantan Govt Employee Told by Scammers to Get Personal Loan to ‘Settle Case’, Loses RM850K

A man in his 50s in Kota Bharu, Kelantan has lost approximately RM852,000 after being duped by a syndicate whose members posed as insurance court and police officers.

As reported by BERNAMA, the man who is a government employee, received a phone call from a woman claiming to be from an insurance company in Ampang at the end of January 2023, claiming that he had made a claim for the cost of surgery three times in a short period of time.

In early February, the victim received a phone call from the same insurance company informing him that he had been involved in a money laundering case.

The victim was then told by the scammers that an arrest warrant and warrant to freeze the victim’s bank account has been issued. He was then connected to a woman who identified herself as a ‘deputy public prosecutor’.

Afterwards, the victim was instructed to open an Agro Bank account and provide the phone number given by the suspect during the process of opening the new account.

He was also told to transfer money from his ASB account into the newly opened account. Not only that but the victim was also instructed to take out a personal loan of RM350,000 with MBSB bank and transfer it into his Agro Bank account. The victim was then told that the ‘court’ needed 3 months to give him an official decision.

Kelantan Police Chief Datuk Muhamad Zaki Harun further elaborated on the case, saying, “In early April, the victim tried to register online banking for his Agro Bank account but failed because someone had registered using his account number.”

“The victim then checked at a nearby bank and found that the balance in his account was only RM48. Realising that he had been cheated, the victim came to the police station to file a report.”

The case is currently being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.

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Also read: Ministry of Home Affairs Warns M’sians to Not Fall For Scam Asking For Money to Release Parcel