KUANTAN: A 56-year-old company manager lost RM156,424.73 after falling victim to a fake investment scheme that promised unrealistically high returns.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the victim was tricked into the scam after being offered an investment opportunity by Clearbridgeleader.com via a WhatsApp group in mid-September.
The scheme promised monthly returns of up to 20 per cent for an initial investment of RM10,000 in foreign currency trading.
“Believing the offer, the victim made 18 transactions to four different bank accounts between Sept 26 and Dec 18. The scam was exposed when he was asked to pay an additional RM7,000 to withdraw the purported profits,” he said in a statement today.
The funds, Yahaya said, came from the victim’s savings and contributions to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).
He urged the public to exercise caution when considering online investments and to verify their legitimacy to avoid falling prey to such scams.