PETALING JAYA: Local influencer Hu Chang Mun has reassured his safety to his family, asking them to consider his detention as a brief stay following his arrest for his alleged role as a money mule in a scam syndicate.
According to China Press, the influencer, currently detained in Changhua, Taiwan for being allegedly involved in the scam, had his first video call with his family on Monday (December 30) morning.
During the call, Hu recalled that he was tricked into working for the syndicate, clarifying that the syndicate lured through an advertisement on Facebook with promises of an opportunity to “travel and earn money simultaneously”.
After travelling abroad on December 11, Hu failed to return to Malaysia after being suspected of his involvement in scams, according to several news reports.
The employer initially arranged for Hu to travel to Guangxi, China and then head to Taiwan for work.
“They (the scam syndicate) didn’t disclose the nature of the job, only describing it as simple tasks. Once I arrived in Taiwan, they confiscated my passport and phone and gave me a work phone.
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“They instructed me to collect money from designated locations, warning that I wouldn’t get my passport back if I disobeyed,” Hu was quoted as saying.
Despite his current situation, Hu reportedly appeared optimistic and calm in the video call, reassuring his family that he was doing well in the detention centre.
“I eat well and sleep well. Every day, I eat until I’m full, then sleep, and when I wake up, I eat again. Please don’t worry about me. Just think of it as a temporary trip,“ Hu was also quoted as saying.
The detained influencer also revealed that many other detainees in the centre was in the same boat as him, deceived into becoming money mules, originating from different countries including Vietnam, Myanmar and India.
“Every week, around four to five people are detained here, and most of them are Malaysians,“ he added.
Bilut assemblyman Lee Chin Chen who assisted in facilitating the video call said that once the news of the scam syndicate broke, his office received six similar reports in just ten days.
Lee disclosed that HU would be detained by the police for two months until February 11, at which point the extension of his detention would be determined.
