Housewife loses RM159,000 in investment scam

PADAWAN: A housewife lost RM159,000 in savings after falling victim to a stock investment scam that originated from a Telegram group.

The incident happened at the end of August when the woman, in her late 30s, was added to the group named ‘Syarikat Dira Trader’ by an unknown individual.

Later, the group’s admin introduced a stock investment opportunity and shared videos of supposedly high returns.

Sarawak Police Commissioner Datuk Mancha Ata said the victim was intrigued after receiving positive feedback from other members, who are believed to be experienced investors.

“Tempted by the prospect of lucrative profits, she took out money from her personal savings account to be used as investment capital.

“Between end of August until beginning of September, the woman transferred RM159,000 into 13 bank accounts via 13 online transfers and eight cash deposit transactions,” he said.

The scam came to light when the victim failed to receive the promised profits, and her investment capital was not returned.

In fact, the suspect requested the woman to make an additional payment to allow the profits to be deposited into her bank account, but she refused to comply.

Mancha added that the woman reported the incident to the police on Tuesday (Sept 17) and the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and dishonesty inducing the delivery of property.

He advised the public to exercise caution and invest only through legitimate and registered platforms sanctioned by Bank Negara Malaysia and the Malaysian Securities Commission.

The public is advised to seek financial advice exclusively from registered agents when considering investments.

“They should also not be easily swayed by investments offering lucrative profits in a short period of time,” he said.