KUALA LUMPUR: Police have arrested six foreign men and a local woman believed to be part of a love scam syndicate.

       Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Comm Datuk Mohd Kamarudin Md Din said the six Nigerian men and Malaysian woman were arrested in two raids in Kajang on June 23.

       “The seven, aged between 33 and 42, were part of an active love scam syndicate that targeted local and foreign victims.

       “We also seized eight laptops, 17 mobile phones, three thumb drives, two modems, two routers, two ATM cards, two Nigerian passports as well as an assortment of documents,” he said.

       He said investigations revealed that the syndicate had been linked to at least eight love scam cases.

       “Our investigations also revealed the syndicate has been active for over five years,” he said.

       “The foreign men entered the country on social and student visas and continued to live here illegally.”

       Comm Mohd Kamarudin said the suspects formed two separate groups, one that created fake accounts on social media and another that looked for mule accounts.

       “They also worked together with locals who would pretend to be Customs officers or courier company staff to dupe victims.

       “We urge the public to exercise caution when befriending people online, especially those who promise gifts as a sign of affection.

       “The public must also not panic or be easily gullible when receiving calls or messages from anyone claiming to be from a courier company or the Customs Department asking for payment in order to release a parcel,” he said.

       He advised the public to use the ccid.rmp.gov.my/semakmule/ webpage to cross-reference the account details of sellers.

       “If an account has been previously linked to any fraud, it would be in that database. Never give personal details to anyone such as account numbers, PINs, one-time passwords or TAC (transaction authorisation code) numbers,” he said.