ALOR SETAR: A woman has been left penniless after falling victim to a love scam syndicate that swindled her of nearly RM1 million.
Kedah Commercial Crime Investigation Department chief Supt Loi Yew Lik said the 53-year-old victim came into contact with a man claiming to be from Yemen through Facebook on Jan 26 last year, and had since been communicating with him via WhatsApp.
He said that throughout their contact, the man gave the victim two rings, purportedly as a symbol of his commitment to marry the woman.
“On Feb 5, 2024, the suspect told the complainant that he had been hospitalised and needed to borrow money for his treatment, promising to repay her when he came to Malaysia to marry her.
“Driven by love and trust, the complainant transferred RM925,850 in stages through 166 transactions into 15 separate bank accounts from Feb 5, 2024 to March 25, 2024,” he said in a statement today.
Loi said the complainant realised she had been scammed when she discovered the man had failed to arrive in Malaysia and that the suspect had blocked her Facebook account.
He said the victim filed a police report about the incident on 12 May at 10.49 am at the Kuala Muda district police headquarters in Sungai Petani.
Loi advised the public to check with the police before making any doubtful money transfers.
He said that checks can be made through the Semak Mule application, the JSJK PDRM Facebook page, or by contacting the National Scam Response Centre at 997.
