MELAKA: Melaka police busted a love scam syndicate with the arrest of three Nigerian men and an Indonesian woman during pre-dawn raids at three apartment units in Taman Klebang Jaya here yesterday.
Melaka Police Chief Datuk Dzulkhairi Mukhtar said the suspects arrested were aged between 39 and 47, with various items such as computers and mobile phones worth RM15,000 seized in the 2.45 am raids on Tuesday.
“Initial investigations found that the love scam syndicate was operating at the premises for the past six months, with the suspects carrying out online fraud via Facebook accounts using various aliases.
“All the suspects entered the country using student passes, but were found to have misused these documents by running a syndicate to deceive victims into giving them money,” he said in a statement here today.
He said social media analysis experts found that the syndicate targeted victims both locally and abroad, deceiving them with sweet words and false promises, urging them to transfer money to e-wallet accounts provided by the syndicate.
Dzulkhairi said the suspects were remanded for 14 days until Aug 25, and the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code and Section 15(1)(C) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963.
He advised the public to exercise caution and be wary of sweet words or false promises from unfamiliar individuals, and suspicious phone numbers or bank account numbers can be verified on the website https://semakmule.rmp.gov.my, with complaints can be lodged via the National Scam Response Centre hotline at 997 to block any financial transactions if they have fallen victim to cyber fraud. – Bernama
