Senior citizen loses RM326,000 to caller posing as Bank Negara rep

BATU PAHAT: A 75-year-old man lost a significant sum of money after being deceived by a phone scam that involved a caller posing as a representative from Bank Negara Malaysia. In early May, an unidentified woman contacted the victim, informing him that his bank account had been frozen by BNM. She instructed him to transfer funds into accounts supposedly linked to the central bank in order to release his finances.

The caller threatened legal action, stating that BNM would look for him if he did not comply. Between May and November, the victim transferred a total of RM325,951.33 in installments to eight different bank accounts. Only after completing the final transfer did the man realize he had been scammed when his phone number was disconnected, cutting off contact with the caller.

He subsequently reported the incident to the police. Assistant Commissioner Shahrulanuar Mushaddat Abdullah Sani of the district police explained that the case is under investigation for cheating under Section 420 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison, lashes, and a fine. He cautioned the public to exercise caution when receiving unsolicited calls from strangers claiming to represent government departments or agencies.

The public should independently verify such claims with the relevant authorities. The Commercial Crime Investigation Department has an active presence on Facebook, where updates on commercial crime scams can be found at @jsjkpdrm and @cybercrimealertrmp.