BAU: A dream deal for a flagship smartphone turned into a nightmare for a local man, who ended up losing RM800 after being lured by an online scammer promising a Samsung S24 Ultra at a dirt-cheap price.
Bau police chief Supt Mohd Haide A. Rahman said the victim, in his early 20s, came across an Instagram account named “lelong_phone_official” that advertised the phone for only RM300.
“Enticed by the offer, the victim made three bank transfers amounting to RM800 to an unknown account on Oct 6.
“After making the payments, the so-called seller continued to demand more money under various excuses.
“The victim grew suspicious and refused to send any more funds before eventually realising he had been cheated,” he said in a statement today.
Mohd Haide reminded the public to be cautious of deals that appear too good to be true and to avoid engaging with unknown callers or online sellers.
Victims of online scams such as phone scams, love scams, fake e-commerce transactions or non-existent loans are urged to immediately contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997, especially if they have just transferred money to a suspicious account.
Members of the public can verify suspicious phone numbers and bank accounts via Check Scammers CCID app or http://semakmule.rmp.gov.my.
For the latest updates on scam tactics, the public is advised to follow CCID’s official social media pages — @JSJKPDRM and @CyberCrimeAlertRMP.
