S'porean businessman cheated of $93,000 in 'black money' scam in M'sia
A 54-year-old Singaporean businessman lost RM252,000 (S$93,000) to a syndicate operating in Malaysia.
The incident happened last Tuesday (April 7) in a hotel in Kuala Lumpur.
The businessman handed over the sum of money as payment for the purchase of a 'special' chemical and some 'black money'.
He had been told that the 'black money' was cash that had been dyed black to avoid detection by authorities and that the chemical would be able to wash away the dye, reported The Rakyat Post.
Members of the syndicate had carried out a demonstration in the hotel a day earlier to convince him.
He never saw them again
But after handing RM252,000 over to the syndicate, the businessman never saw them again.
KL deputy police chief Law Hong Soon said: “The suspects took the money and then told him to wait in the hotel room as they wanted to get the liquid for him."
The Singaporean was then told via text message to vacate the room as police were raiding the hotel.
The syndicate members became uncontactable and the victim never got the chemicals he was promised, said the police chief.
The victim made a police report later that day.
Syndicate members nabbed
On Monday (April 13), Malaysian police arrested three people – two Cameroonians and a Guatemalan man – involved in the scam.
The men, aged between 35 and 38, were nabbed in Dang Wangi at 6.30pm while they were returning to their rental car.
"Following the arrests, we raided three apartment units in Ampang and found stashes of fake ringgits, Singapore dollars and US dollars, along with equipment and printers to print the fake money," said Mr Law.
The counterfeit notes amounted to over RM1 million, reported The Star.
New Straits Times Online reported that the cash belonging to the businessman was not found.
The trio are being investigated for cheating and possession of fake money.
According to The Rakyat Post, the Singaporean man is also being investigated as he had been attempting to buy the chemical.
Sources: The Rakyat Post, New Straits Times Online, The Star
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