Nightmare for four job scam victims

PETALING JAYA: The promise of a well-paying job seemed like good fortune for four young men.

But just a day after reporting for work, they were in police custody accused of cheating. Since then, they have been moved from one police station to another across four states.

Meanwhile, their families have been unable to see them or get a proper explanation from police.

The men’s predicament was brought to light at a press conference yesterday by Kepong MP, Lim Lip Eng.

Lim explained the four, all in their early 20s and identified as Ong, Chua, Hock and Tony, had received an offer for a customer service job on Facebook, with a promised salary of RM4,000 a month.

However, they were not told what product or service they were supposed to be dealing with except they would be briefed as soon as they checked into the company’s hostel in Kuchai Avenue in Kuala Lumpur, Lim said.

“Yearning to ease their parents’ financial burden, the four of them agreed to take up the offer and checked into the hostel on June 22 for a briefing that was scheduled for the following day.”

However, on the day of the supposed briefing police raided the premises and the four were arrested and held under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and dishonesty.

Lawyer Wong Kar Fai, who is representing the four men, claimed they were remanded at the Brickfields police station until June 27 before they were transferred to the Seremban police station.

Thereafter, they were sent to Johor Baru Utara and then Kluang before finally ending up in Ipoh on Wednesday.

“Until today, the parents have not been allowed to visit them and information from the police has not been forthcoming,” Wong said.

He also claimed police continued to keep the four under remand although their application for an extension was rejected by the court.

Wong said the only explanation he managed to get from police was that the crime, allegedly committed by them, had been reported in various states.

Hence, the need to remand them in all the stations that received those reports.

Lim urged police to consolidate the various investigations instead of taking the four men on a “road show”. He said his office had sent an appeal letter to Bukit Aman on Tuesday.

Attempts to seek a response from police were unsuccessful at press time.