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AN 81-year-old retiree has lost RM303,958.50 after falling victim to a non-existent investment scheme advertised on Facebook, in what police describe as a sophisticated online fraud.
Brickfields district police chief Assistant Commissioner Hoo Chang Hook said the victim clicked on an investment link on 9 December while at his home in Bukit Damansara and was subsequently added to a group promoting a system known as SAC, which promised high returns.
According to Hoo, the victim invested approximately RM500,000 through an application called Sacia Pro and was later informed that he had purportedly generated profits exceeding RM9 million.
However, when he attempted to withdraw the funds, he was told to pay a 12 per cent commission amounting to about RM110,000, which he did.
“Although he was promised that he could make withdrawals without further payment, the syndicate later blocked the withdrawal and demanded an additional commission exceeding RM1 million. All payments were made via online transfers from the victim’s bank account to accounts provided by the suspects.
“Investigations found that the victim was deceived in an online investment transaction after seeing the advertisement on Facebook, and he carried out 15 transactions for investment purposes into four different bank accounts,” he said in a statement today.
Hoo said that when the victim sought to withdraw his supposed profits, he was repeatedly asked to make further payments on various pretexts before realising he had been defrauded, resulting in losses totalling RM303,958.50.
“Feeling that he had been cheated, the victim lodged a police report for further action.
“Further checks revealed that two of the suspect bank accounts had five and 15 prior scam records respectively,” he added.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating. Police have urged the public to exercise caution when encountering investment offers on social media platforms promising unusually high returns.
In a related matter, phone scams surged sharply in January, with 481 cases reported, marking a 46 per cent increase compared with the same month last year, according to the Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID).
Financial losses linked to these scams also rose significantly, jumping 58 per cent to RM27 million.
New Straits Times reported CCID director Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa saying today that the persistent rise in phone scams remains a serious concern as criminal syndicates continuously refine their methods to deceive the public.
“The trend is worrying as phone scams remain among the most prevalent forms of commercial crime, with syndicates continuously adapting their tactics to deceive victims,” he said.
According to Rusdi, scammers often impersonate officials from law enforcement, banks, courier services or government agencies, using threats of arrest, claims of outstanding debts or notifications of suspicious financial activity to create panic and pressure victims into revealing sensitive information or transferring funds.
He urged members of the public to exercise extreme caution when receiving calls from unknown numbers.
“Never disclose banking credentials, personal identification details or one-time passwords to unverified callers. Claims made during suspicious calls should always be verified with the relevant agencies through official channels,” he said.
Rusdi emphasised that public awareness and prompt verification remain critical in defending against evolving fraud syndicates.
“Vigilance and verification are the best safeguards against financial exploitation,” he added. - February 22, 2026