BALIK PULAU, March 18 — Nine individuals believed to be involved in a scam to extort money from the next of kin of prisoners or persons under detention — on the pretence of helping to free them — have been arrested in a series of raids in Perak and Selangor recently.
Southwest District Police chief Supt AA Anbalagan said five men and four women aged between 14 and 60 were arrested between March 12 and 14, following a police report lodged by a housewife who fell victim to the scam.
“Investigations show that a 43-year-old man arrested in Selangor is the main suspect, as he admitted to being involved in fraud and extortion cases by disguising himself as a police inspector from the Penang, Melaka and Sabah police contingents. We also arrested his girlfriend believed to be involved in the activity,” he told a press conference here today.
He said the modus operandi was to obtain information on the detainees before calling their next of kin and convincing them that their family member could be set free for a certain fee, to be deposited into a bank account.
According to Anbalagan, apart from the main suspect and his girlfriend, seven other individuals arrested comprised those whose accounts were used to receive the money from the victims.
“They received a commission of RM3,000 to RM5,000 for each transaction, and checks on their bank accounts showed that there were dubious transactions involving more than RM800,000 from January last year till January this year. It is believed that the gang has been carrying out such activities since 2016,” he said.
He said the authorities managed to bust the group after a 52-year-old housewife complained she was cheated of RM100,000 by individuals claiming they could help release her husband from a drug trafficking case.
“Following the arrest of the nine individuals, police seized 25 mobile phones, various bank cards, more than RM14,000 in cash and jewellery. Two students were released on police bail while the others were remanded for further investigation,” he said. — Bernama
