KOTA BARU: A teacher lost about RM259,000 to phone scammers impersonating National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) personnel and a police officer.
District police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Rosdi Daud said police received a report from the male teacher on Thursday.
"The teacher claimed he received a call on Oct 26 from a 011-51755069 number and the man on the line introduced himself as personnel from the National Scam Response Centre.
"Later, the caller transferred the teacher to another man who claimed to be a police officer from the Ipoh police headquarters and told him that he was involved in illegal activities.
"The fake officer said he was the investigating officer for the case and had asked the victim to transfer all his money into two separate bank accounts that he had given," he said in a statement last night.
Believing the man's words and afraid of being arrested, Rosdi said the victim then transferred his money into the accounts which the caller claimed belonged to Bank Negara and the reason for transferring the money was for auditing purposes.
He added the victim had made 10 transactions from his Tabung Haji savings amounting to RM259,000 between Oct 30 to Nov 8.
When he realised the money was not refunded to him and was cheated by the men, Rosdi said the victim then lodged a police report.
He said police are investigating the case under Section 420 of Penal Code.
The NSRC is a 24-hour emergency hotline meant for victims of phone and cyber fraud as a first-stop, rapid response centre for them to report the crime.
Scammers posing as personnel from the NSRC have been increasingly reported.
As awareness about various scamming methods, including postal, bank, and phone scams, continues to grow, scammers are adapting and inventing new tactics.
The public is advised to exercise caution and not be misled by individuals claiming to be NSRC personnel who allege involvement in criminal activities and then request banking details.