Padawan man loses RM70,000 after falling victim to Macau Scam syndicate

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Photo shows the police crest.

KUCHING (Aug 31): A man who is in his 30s from Padawan lost a total of RM70,000 after falling victim to a Macau Scam syndicate on Sunday.

Padawan district police deputy chief DSP Lim Jaw Shyong said the man received a call from the suspect at around 3pm on Sunday claiming to be from the Inland Revenue Board (IRB).

“The suspect claimed that a company registered under his name in Kedah has an outstanding balance of tax of RM17,000.

“The victim, however, denied that he has a company in Kedah. He was later connected to a man who claimed to be a policeman and told him that the company registered in the victim’s name was also suspected of money laundering.

“The victim, who was deceived by the allegations then provided all his personal and banking details to the suspect,” said Lim in a statement today.

He added that the victim had also provided several Transaction Authorisation Codes (TAC) to the suspect.

“The victim then checked his accounts through online banking and realised that a total of RM50,000 in one of his bank accounts had been transferred to another unknown bank account holder.

“In addition, a total of RM20,000 in his other bank account was also transferred to another person’s account,” he said.

Realising that he has been scammed, the victim then lodged police report.

Lim said the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.

Lim took the opportunity to advise the public not to panic if they received a phone call from a stranger claiming that they have tax arrears or are involved in money laundering.

“The public is also advised to check the account number provided by the caller to see if the account owner has a criminal record.”

Lim said the public is encouraged to contact the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) info line via WhatsApp or SMS at 013-2111222 or visit the CCID official portal at ccid.rmp.gov.my for further information.

Additionally, the public is encouraged to visit the link http://ccid.rmp.gov.my/semakmule# to check the account number.