Police said the 50-year-old victim signed up for an investment programme offered by a firm known as “JMC” after seeing an advertisement on Facebook

He was added to a WhatsApp group and subsequently asked to download the “TRADEJMC” app, which displayed profits of up to RM16.7 million.

“Swayed by the profits supposedly made, the victim carried out 23 transfers totalling RM1.25 million into several third-party bank accounts between October and December 2025,” Bernama quoted the department as saying.

The bank accounts were registered under the names of JMC M Trading Venture, JMC Top Trading, JCG Entire Trading Sdn Bhd, and JMC Flex Solution.

The businessman suspected something was amiss when he was asked to pay an additional withdrawal fee of RM4.5 million, equivalent to 30% of the displayed profits.

He filed a police report on Jan 6 after realising the investment scheme had no connection to a legitimate firm with a similar name.

The CCID said at least 20 reports had been lodged against “JMC M Trading Venture”.

It also said that companies registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia did not guarantee secure transactions, as registered corporate or business accounts could also be misused as mule accounts for investment fraud activities.

The department urged the public to check its Semakmule portal at semakmule.rmp.gov.my before conducting any transaction.

It also warned the public against being lured by social media investment advertisements guaranteeing quick and unrealistically high returns.

The “red flags” to look out for include unauthorised apps, instructions to transfer funds to third-party accounts, and restrictions on withdrawing profits.