Sandakan records RM4.3m losses from online scams since January
Sandakan police chief ACP Ahsmon Bajah said 170 such cases were recorded last year, with total losses reaching RM23.06 million.
'The victims come from various backgrounds, including professionals, business owners, and retirees. Most of them are aged between 31 and 50, with 61.11 percent being men and 38.89 percent women,' he said in a statement today.
Ahsmon stressed that police take these crimes seriously and urged the public to remain vigilant.
He also cautioned the public not to become money mules by allowing third parties to use their bank accounts.
Those found involved may be investigated under Section 424 of the Penal Code, which carries a fine of between RM10,000 and RM100,000, imprisonment of one to seven years, or both, upon conviction.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Travel agent who allegedly threatened couple in Japan arrested in Sepang
KUALA LUMPUR: A 36-year-old travel agent was arrested at a restaurant in Sepang yesterday for allegedly threatening a husband and wife in Japan in January. The suspect was arrested following a police report lodged by the victims on Jan 28 after they returned from Japan. Sepang district police chief Assistant Commissioner Norhizam Bahaman said the suspect is known to the victims through a different travel agency. "Preliminary investigations showed that the motive behind the incident stemmed from dissatisfaction over the management of bringing tourists to Japan. "The case is being investigated under Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation, which carries a jail term, a fine, or both upon conviction," he said when contacted today. Norhizam said the suspect was arrested at 5pm yesterday, and a remand application will be made at the Sepang magistrate's court today. "The investigation papers will be referred to the deputy public prosecutor's office to decide on the next course of action." He added that the investigation pertains to the case of intimidation that took place in Sepang. Earlier, the victim, who is also a tour guide, Noornabilla Azemi, 36, claimed she was assaulted, had her head slammed against a bed frame, and received death threats from the suspect. The incident was reportedly witnessed by her husband at a friend's rented house in Japan on Jan 24. She said she and her husband were in Japan at the time to handle a group of Malaysian tourists in Tokyo under the assignment of a local travel agency. "I have known the suspect for two years and had previously been offered work as a tour guide through him. "However, I did not expect him to resort to violence simply because he was unhappy that I had supposedly entered an area in Japan he considered his territory. "During the incident, my husband, Mohamad Zhaza Mohamad, 34, along with a Malaysian friend living in Tokyo, was also assaulted," she said.
New Straits Times
4 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Travel agency director among two Bangladeshis held for bribing KLIA enforcement officers
KUALA LUMPUR: Two Bangladeshi men, including the director of a Kuala Lumpur-based travel agency, have been arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for allegedly masterminding a syndicate that facilitated the entry of foreigners by bribing enforcement officers at Terminal 1 of Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Sources said the suspects, both in their 50s, were arrested in an operation conducted in Negri Sembilan between 5pm and 7pm yesterday. "Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects acted as agents for foreign nationals, bribing enforcement officers at the airport to ease the entry process for these individuals at the country's entry points. "The syndicate's modus operandi involved approaching enforcement officers at the airport to engage in 'counter-setting' activities. "The officers involved would then facilitate the immigration clearance process for these foreign nationals," the source said. Both suspects have been remanded for six days starting today until July 20 to assist in investigations into the case. Yesterday, the MACC's Intelligence Division carried out a joint integrated operation known as Op Recruit in Negri Sembilan and Kuala Lumpur. The operation, conducted jointly with the Border Control and Protection Agency and the Immigration Department's Intelligence and Special Operations Division, also involved members of the MACC's elite Anti-Corruption Tactical Squad, following intelligence gathered since early this year. During the raids, the MACC seized three mobile phones and various foreign currencies, including US dollars, Indonesian rupiah, and Bangladeshi taka, with a total value of about RM16,000. According to the source, between January and early this month, the MACC detected 10 transactions amounting to about RM138,000. "Preliminary investigations showed that for each foreigner, enforcement officers were bribed between RM1,800 and RM2,500. "Payments were made in cash through middlemen, typically inside vehicles or at the suspects' residences around Kuala Lumpur and Negri Sembilan," the source added. Meanwhile, MACC Intelligence Division Senior Director Datuk Saiful Ezral Arifin confirmed the arrests when contacted. He said the case is being investigated under Section 16(b) of the MACC Act 2009.
New Straits Times
5 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Nine foreigners arrested for fighting with weapons at Bangsar construction site
KUALA LUMPUR: Nine foreigners have been arrested by police in connection with a fight involving a group of men that broke out at a construction site in Bangsar. Brickfields deputy police chief Superintendent Ahmad Firdaus Mustaffa Kamal said the foreigners were arrested following a report lodged over the fight at 4.53pm on July 14. "The police arrested nine foreigners, aged between 24 and 37, suspected of being involved in the fight," he said in a statement today. He added that police seized six yellow safety helmets and three silver scaffolding poles, believed to have been used during the fight, when they detained the suspects. All nine men, he said, have been remanded for four days starting today until July 18 to assist police investigations. "The case is being investigated under Section 148 of the Penal Code for rioting with weapons." Ahmad Firdaus also issued a stern warning to the public not to get involved in any fights as action will be taken against them.
