SEREMBAN: A retired nurse has been cheated of some RM121,000 in a Macau scam here, says Negri Sembilan Commercial Crime Investigations Department head Supt Aibee Ab Ghani.

       He said the 71-year-old victim was at home in Lenggeng near here on Oct 3 when she received a call from an individual claiming to be an insurance agent.

       "The caller asked the victim about an insurance claim she purportedly made but the victim denied doing so.

       "The call was then supposedly transferred to the Pudu police station where the victim spoke to one Sjn Adam and then ‘Insp Mastura’," he said in a statement.

       The victim was then told that she was being probed for her involvement in money laundering activities which she denied.

       Supt Aibee said the call was then transferred to another senior officer identified as “Puan Yong”.

       "This Puan Yong asked the victim details of her bank accounts and told her to transfer her savings from two accounts she owned to a third account," he said.

       The victim then checked her third account as well as her Tabung Haji savings and found that a total of RM120,500 had been withdrawn without her knowledge.

       The online withdrawals were done between Oct 8 and 10.

       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.