Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Cheong Un Hong said in a regular press conference yesterday that a local woman fell victim to a fake police scam, losing 600,000 patacas.
The victim is under the age of 30.
According to Cheong, the victim was contacted by a man claiming to be a Shanghai police officer on December 18. The “police officer” alleged that the victim’s phone number had been used to disseminate a large number of fraudulent text messages.
Complying with the scammer’s demands, the victim stayed in a hotel guestroom to participate in video calls purportedly for the “investigation” with the fake “police officer.”
Over the course of nine days staying alone in the room, she borrowed money from her family to cover her expenses during her stay in the hotel as well as 600,000 patacas which she deposited into her bank account, subsequently sharing her bank details with the scammer.
Cheong noted that the victim noticed the 600,000 patacas had vanished from her account on Thursday, prompting her to realise that she had been deceived. She promptly reported the case to the police the following day.
