LANGKAWI: Kedah has recorded an increase in commercial crime cases, with losses totalling RM28.90mil last year compared to RM17.82mil in 2020.

       Kedah police chief Comm Datuk Kamarul Zaman Mamat said the number of cases surged to 1,881 last year against 1,125 in 2020.

       "The number of cheating cases increased, especially during the various phases of the movement control order.

       "Due to MCO, there was a change in crime trends, from face-to-face to virtual.

       "Most of the cases took place during the MCO when most people were at home.

       "Of the total number of commercial crime cases last year, a total of 657 or 34.92%, were brought to court," he was quoted by Astro Awani as saying during a press conference here on Monday (Jan 3).

       Comm Kamarul Zaman said 90% of the cases involved cheating, with online shopping scams topping the list (593 cases) followed by Macau scams (397), non-existent loan offers (297), non-existent investment opportunities (214), and love scams (98).