KUALA LUMPUR: Police have arrested nine suspects, including three women, believed to be involved in telephone scam activities impersonating insurance officers.
Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf said those arrested were believed to play roles as mule account holders and owners of mule companies used in the fraud activities orchestrated by this syndicate.
Ramli said with the capture of these syndicate members, authorities have successfully resolved a total of 61 cases, involving a cumulative loss value of RM28.92 million.
"During an operation conducted on Feb 13 in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur, nine local individuals—six males and three females aged between 28 and 42 years—were arrested.
"Additionally, authorities seized 11 units of mobile phone, nine ATM cards, one passport book, one crossbody bag, and cash totalling RM377.00.
"All suspects are currently in remand until today. The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code," he said during a press conference today.
Ramli revealed that the victim, a 70-year-old retired banking sector employee, became aware of the scam in September last year after discovering that a total of RM3,839,000.00 had been fraudulently transferred out of her account.
"She received a call purportedly from Prudential Insurance in November 2022, claiming there was an insurance claim made using her name, which she denied.
"The call was then transferred to individuals posing as the police and AMLA (Anti-Money Laundering Act), directing her to open a new bank account and transfer all her funds to it.
"She was also instructed to provide the account information and online banking details to the syndicate, and she was prohibited from updating or accessing her bank account for several months under the pretext of an ongoing investigation."
