KUANTAN: Assuming he was destined for bigger returns from an online investment scheme, a private sector retiree withdrew his Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) savings and sold his unit trust funds amounting RM163,300.
The man in his late 50s was baited with a RM213 profit in his first investment before ending up being scammed by the non-existent scheme which he dealt through WhatsApp.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the victim from Pekan was lured to join the investment scheme after receiving a phone call from an unknown caller in July this year.
"The caller had introduced herself as Selina from Group L-Trader and explained to the victim about the investment scheme offered by the company. The victim expressed interest to join and was invited to join a WhatsApp group.
"The victim provided all his details through a link provided in WhatsApp group. After completing the registration process, the victim realised RM5,000 was deposited by the company into his investment e-wallet.
"The company informed him that he had earned RM213.05 and the cash was deposited into his bank account," he said in a statement today.
Yahaya said the victim who was convinced with the scheme made 15 transactions into a bank account provided by Selina and had utilised his EPF savings, and cash earned after selling his unit trust funds.
"The victim realised he was cheated after failing to withdraw his investment profit which appeared in the e-wallet application and the agent gave various excuses to make the payout. The victim lodged a police report yesterday," he said, adding that the case is investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
He urged the public to be wary of calls from strangers and unrealistic investment offers, and verify through https://semakmule.rmp.gov.my before making any online financial transactions.