JOHOR BAHRU — An elderly woman claimed to have lost RM206,900 in a phone scam in July last year.

Johor Bahru Utara district police chief ACP Balveer Singh Mahindar Singh said the 64-year-old woman initially received a call from an individual posing as an officer from the Communications Ministry, who falsely informed her that she was involved in a cybercrime case, which the victim denied.

Subsequently, she was contacted by two individuals pretending to be police officers, alleging that she was under investigation for money laundering.

“The woman was asked to provide her bank account details, along with several one-time passwords (OTPs), to one ‘Tuan Omar’ for investigation purposes. She was also told to keep the matter confidential until further notice.

“However, on Sept 6, when the victim checked her bank account, she discovered that 12 money transfers had been made to six different accounts between Sept 14 and Nov 14 last year, totalling RM206,900,” he said in a statement today.

Realising she had been deceived, the victim lodged a police report yesterday afternoon.

The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code. — BERNAMA