Police nab four Taiwanese, foil attempt to set up scam call centre

KUALA LUMPUR: Police foiled an attempt by an international syndicate to set up a fraudulent call centre hub in the capital, following the arrest of four Taiwanese nationals in a special operation carried out at two premises in Kuala Lumpur, on Jan 30.

Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director, Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf, said that all the suspects, who were on the Taiwan authorities’ wanted list for being involved in fraud and organised crime, were arrested two days after arriving in the country.

“During the special operations, the police also arrested four locals - three men and one woman - all suspects aged 31 to 44, and seized various items, including 12 mobile phones of various brands; a set of documents; three passports, and two access cards.

“The police also seized two cars from the syndicate. The four suspects were then handed over to the Malaysian Immigration Department on Feb 13, for further action,” he said, in the CCID’s weekly press conference yesterday.

In a separate case, an accountant lost RM5.04 million after being duped by a cryptocurrency investment syndicate, purportedly based in the United States.

Ramli said that the 55-yearold victim became interested in investing after meeting a man in August last year, who offered an investment in the US promising a lucrative return.

“The victim made 143 transfers to several ‘cryptocurrency wallets’, with a total amount of RM 5.04 million. The victim felt cheated when he could no longer contact the individual who managed his investment,” he said. — Bernama