SEREMBAN: Another individual, this time a 43-year-old teacher, has lost more than RM265,000 after being cheated in a Macau scam here.

       Negri Sembilan Commercial Crime Investigation Department chief Supt Aibee Ab Ghani said the victim not only lost RM65,000 of her own savings but also RM200,000 which she had borrowed from two banks.

       "The victim had received a call from an individual claiming to be from an insurance company in June last year regarding a claim that she apparently made.

       "However, when she denied making any claim the caller told her that the company will have to lodge a police report on the matter," he said.

       Supt Aibee said later in the day, the victim, who was from Dangi in Johol, received a call from one Sjn Razlan claiming to be from the Ampangan Jaya police station who accused her of being involved in money laundering activities.

       "The suspect told her that her details had been used to open 13 bank accounts used for money laundering purposes.

       "The following day, the victim got a call from a woman claiming to be one Insp Wati who told her to transfer all her savings into one of her rarely used bank accounts to help resolve the cases against her," he said, adding that Insp Wati also kept in touch with the victim via WhatsApp over the next five months.

       During this time, the victim was also told to apply for personal bank loans and to remit the money into the account to be used to pay to settle the cases against her.

       She was also asked to provide details of the said bank account.

       Supt Aibee said the victim then applied for personal loans amounting to RM200,000 from two banks.

       From Oct 29, 2021, till March 26, 2022, the victim had transferred some RM265,000 into the account via nine transactions.

       "However, the victim was in for a shock when she discovered on April 8 that the balance in the account was only RM78.

       "Upon checking with the bank in Kuala Pilah, the victim was told that the cash had been transferred into the account of an individual," he said.

       Realising that she had been scammed, the victim lodged a police report.

       The case is being probed under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating which carries a jail term of between one and 10 years, whipping and a fine upon conviction.

       The term “Macau scam” was coined as it is believed it originated from Macau or that the first victims came from there.

       The scam often starts with a phone call from someone pretending to be an officer from a bank, government or law enforcement agency or debt collector.

       The scammer will tell the potential victim that they owe money or has an unpaid fine, often with a very short window to settle the payment or face “dire consequences”.

       The victims will then be asked to make payments to get them off the hook.