Tuesday July 23, 2013
MALACCA: More than a dozen housewives and retirees in the state have fallen victim to a scratch-and-win scam operated by a syndicate from Singapore and Johor.
The syndicate is believed to be preying on members of the public during Ramadan, with offers of up to RM1.5mil worth of prizes in luxury cars and electronic equipment.
The latest victims were two housewives, aged 27 and 34, who lost RM13,300 over the weekend.
The syndicate, comprising mostly teenagers who sought payment of a “tax” for the prizes, is believed to have moved its operations to Malacca after Johor Baru police cracked down on its members early last month.
Retired teacher Dzukifli Khalid, 66, from Melekek in Alor Gajah, said he almost lost RM3,300 in “tax” when he was approached by three young men while grocery shopping on July 18.
“They approached me at the parking lot while I was getting out from my car. One of them handed me a sealed envelope and asked me to open it. Inside was a card with the message, ‘Congratulations, you have won RM1.5mil’,” he said in an interview.
Dzukilfli said the three youths began jumping in joy, claiming that he was the lucky one because no one had ever won such a huge amount.
He was also convinced to pay RM3,300 as “tax” for the prize.
He said luckily for him, police managed to force the syndicate leader to refund his “tax” money the next day.
Malacca deputy commercial crime chief Deputy Supt Chan Teck Paing said that to convince their victims, the syndicate members would show them pictures of people who had purportedly won the cars.
The victims, he said, were conned into believing they could collect their prizes after forking out the “tax”.
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