Kedah police contingent headquarters commercial CID chief Elias Omar said the victim, a 62-year-old man, had initially dealt with a woman who claimed to be the manager of a private company last month.

“The victim had seen an investment advertisement on Facebook that offered lucrative returns related to foreign exchange, with free guidance through social media.

“The woman who gained the victim’s trust, had asked the victim to submit his personal documents, such as a picture of his identity card, driving licence and bank account statement as a condition of registration in the investment scheme,” he said in a statement here today.

Elias said the victim was then provided with a link and asked to pay a registration fee of US$100 and was told later that his registration had been approved.

Elias said the victim then liaised with another woman who acted as his guide to help manage his investment through another application. The victim made five more transactions amounting to RM108,726.09.

Last Friday, the retired teacher found he had not only failed to get any lucrative returns, the woman had also stopped calling him.

“The victim asked his daughter to investigate the company and she found it to be a cheating syndicate. The victim then lodged a report at a police station in Kubang Pasu yesterday,” he said.

Elias advised the public not to be easily deceived by any online investment scheme advertised on social media that promises lucrative returns.

He also reminded the public to check and get information first from the “Semak Mule” application to protect themselves from being cheated.