BUKIT MERTAJAM: Penang police have busted an online scam syndicate run by foreigners, which offered fake gift card deals through a call centre operating from a luxury condominium at Alma here.
State police chief Datuk Hamzah Ahmad said the operation was carried out by a team from the Seberang Perai Tengah District Police Headquarters (IPD SPT) and the Penang Commercial Crime Investigation Department after several days of surveillance and intelligence gathering.
“During the raid, police found four local individuals, including a woman, aged between 18 and 28, who admitted to working as call centre operators for the past week. They were paid RM2,600 a month.
“Also at the premises were a foreign man and woman, aged 23 and 38, who entered Malaysia on May 1 using social visit passes. Both are believed to be the main masterminds of the syndicate,“ he said in a statement today.
Initial investigations revealed that the syndicate scammed victims by offering fake prizes via the Telegram app. They used a group called ‘Malay Telegroup 875’ to collect personal details from victims.
Hamzah said the scammers would call victims, offer them fake prizes, and ask for personal details. These details were then sent to a third party, believed to be a Telegram administrator based in Kuala Lumpur, who would later contact the victims again and ask them to pay certain fees to claim the fake prizes.
Police seized various items from the premises, including four monitors, eight mobile phones, three WiFi modems, four keyboards, an access card, internet cables, three folding tables, four chairs, four headphones, RM5,000 in cash, a house key, and four purchase receipts.
All suspects have been remanded for three days until May 16 to assist in investigations under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
