BALIK PULAU: Police detained two people, including a woman who acted as an 'account mule', in two different phone scam cases recently.
Southwest district police chief Superintendent Kamarul Rizal Jenal said a 30-year-old woman was detained in Sungai Petani, Kedah while a 29-year-old man was detained in Bukit Mertajam yesterday.
He said the phone scam syndicate members had disguised themselves as courier company workers and police officers to cheat the first victim of RM57,000.
Meanwhile, in the second case, a syndicate members had disguised himself as a Pos Laju worker and police officer to cheat his victim of RM20,720.
"In the first incident, the victim claimed to have received a call from a courier company, claiming they received a parcel on his name which contained three MyKads, three passports and two bank cards, belonging to another individual. The call was subsequently transferred to the police.
"The 34-year-old factory worker conducted nine online bank transactions into four separate accounts totalling RM57,000 for investigation processes.
"In the second case, the victim claimed to have received a call from a man who introduced himself as a worker from Pos Laju. The caller had told the victim that there was a parcel for her containing items like MyKad and ATM cards. The call was subsequently transferred to the 'police'.
"The victim was told that her MyKad had been used in crime and money laundering activity. To clear her name, the 48-year-old factory worker had carried out several online transactions into separate accounts totalling RM20,720," he said today.
Kamarul said both cases were probed under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
"We urge the people to be wary and not to easily fall for such syndicates," especially through social media," he added.