KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 2 - The Sessions Court fined an unemployed woman RM24,000 today after she pleaded guilty to two charges of fraudulently transferring RM1.1 million belonging to a retiree into her own bank account eight years ago.
Judge Muhammad Ilmami Ahmad imposed a fine on Chin Chew Woon, 43, and ordered her to serve 24 months' imprisonment if she failed to settle it.
According to the charges, she was accused of transferring RM500,000 and RM600,000 belonging to a 66-year-old man into her bank account at Brickfields on December 26 and December 27, 2018.
Chin was charged under Section 424 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment, a fine, or both.
According to the facts, the victim received a call from an individual who introduced himself as a police officer and claimed the victim was involved in a money laundering case.
The victim was then instructed to transfer his savings amounting to RM500,000 and RM600,000 into the accused's account for investigation purposes.
Subsequently, the victim was unable to contact the individual claiming to be a police officer to recover the money.
Investigations revealed that the accused owned the account that received the RM1.1 million. She failed to provide a satisfactory explanation regarding the transactions.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Anis Hakimah Ibrahim urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence, taking into account the substantial losses suffered by the victim and the prevalence of such fraudulent cases in Malaysia.
Chin, who was unrepresented, pleaded for a lenient sentence on the grounds that she is unemployed and has to support two children, her mother, and her ailing mother-in-law.
