Woman, 76, duped out of RM327,600 by scammers posing as police officers

KUANTAN, May 12 — A 76-year-old woman lost RM327,600 after falling victim to a phone scam syndicate posing as police officers.

Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the victim received a call from an individual posing as a police officer from Sarawak, who claimed that her identity card number had been linked to fraudulent activities and that her bank account was under investigation.

“The suspect also told the victim not to inform her family members or anyone close to her about the matter. She was then instructed to transfer money, purportedly for police investigation purposes, to prove she was innocent, with the assurance that the funds would be returned once the investigation was completed,” he said in a statement today.

Yahaya said the victim made 42 transactions totalling RM327,600 into seven different accounts between May 28, 2025, and March 25 this year, using her savings and loans from moneylending companies.

He said the suspect also instructed the woman to use two land titles as collateral for loans from a moneylending company.

“The victim only realised she had been scammed when her child asked for the land titles to process the inheritance following her husband’s death, as the land was still registered under her late husband’s name,” he said.

Yahaya urged the public to remain vigilant against phone calls from individuals claiming to be enforcement officers or government agencies, and to avoid transferring money to unfamiliar accounts. — Bernama