That was the hard lesson learnt by a politician in Seremban, who lost RM18,000 after going to the aid of a man at a mall there two days ago, The Star reported.
The politician had just left a moneychanger after converting a few thousand US dollars to ringgit and put the cash in his back pocket.
However, minutes later, the man standing in front of him on the escalator appeared to black out, prompting the politician and several other bystanders to go to his aid.
According to the daily, a witness said that the man had just as quickly got to his feet and ran off.
The scam was soon revealed when the politician realised that the RM18,000 in his back pocket was gone. He is believed to have been pick-pocketed with the “fainting” man used as a distraction, to take away the focus of the victim.
Seremban OCPD Asst Comm Thiew Hock Poh told The Star that police were investigating the incident and would be checking for CCTV footage of the alleged theft.