KUCHING, July 29 — An assistant executive of a government agency in his 50s lost RM385,000 to an online scam.

Miri police chief ACP Mohd Farhan Lee Abdullah said, based on the victim’s report, he had received a phone call from an unknown person who introduced himself as a police officer from the Penang Police Contingent Headquarters.

“The suspect claimed that the victim was involved in money laundering activities and was wanted by the authorities.

“The victim was then instructed to withdraw money from his Employees Provident Fund (EPF) account and hand it over to the authorities purportedly to facilitate investigation,” he said in a statement here today.

Mohd Farhan said the victim only realised he had been scammed after being asked to make an additional payment. The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code. — Bernama