KUCHING: A woman in her early 40s, who is a civil servant in the Bau district, has lodged a police report after falling victim to a scam involving impersonation by someone pretending to be a family member.
Bau District Police Chief, Supt Mohd Haide A Rahaman, said the incident occurred on October 7 at the victim’s government quarters. She received a WhatsApp message from an individual posing as a family member, asking to borrow money.
Believing the message was genuine, the victim transferred RM500 online to an unknown bank account the same day.
“The victim realised she had been deceived the next day after reading a message from her family member stating that their phone number had been used by another person,” he said.
Haide advised the public to remain cautious and avoid responding to calls or messages from unknown numbers. He reminded the public not to panic or be easily intimidated by claims made against them if they have done nothing wrong.
He also urged the public not to share their banking details with unknown individuals or parties and to be wary of online job offers or other suspicious messages.
By Connie Chieng