A local woman was scammed out of over 1.3 million patacas after trusting an online friend and investing in cryptocurrencies on his advice, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Lou Chan Fai said at a press conference yesterday.
Lou said the victim is in her thirties.
According to Lou, the victim met the male stranger online in March, and they quickly become virtual friends. Lou said that in early April the scammer began persuading her to invest in cryptocurrencies as she could make a profit. The victim followed his instructions and downloaded two apps named Binance and OKX.
Trusting the scammer, the victim initially deposited 50,000 patacas into the apps which showed a profit, Lou said, adding that the victim had successfully withdrawn US$1,000 (8,000 patacas).
Last month, the fraudster again persuaded the victim to invest more into the apps, leading her to deposit 1.35 million patacas on May 21. However, she soon received a purported customer service notification that her account had been frozen due to an operational error. Finally realising that she has been scammed, she reported the case to the police on Monday.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Lou Chan Fai looks on during yesterday’s press conference. – Photo: William Chan
